Pound Appreciates As Omicron Variant Concerns Abate
29 November 2021 - 06:21PM
RTTF2
The pound climbed against its major counterparts in the European
session on Monday, as European shares rose, led by a gain in travel
and energy stocks, following comments from policymakers and
scientists to ease concerns over the impact of the Omicron variant
of coronavirus.
Investors reconsidered the threat of the Omicron coronavirus
variant after South African health experts suggested that it is
showing mild symptoms so far.
German biotechnology company BioNTech said that it could
determine in two weeks whether its current vaccine would be
sufficiently effective against the Omicron variant.
Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said on Friday that the
economic fallout from the new variant is likely to be less severe
than the delta virus.
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said that the
bloc is better equipped to respond to a risk of a fifth wave or the
Omicron variant.
Data from the Bank of England showed that UK mortgage approvals
and lending declined in October as buyers brought forward their
borrowing to September to take advantage of stamp duty holiday.
Approvals for house purchases fell to 67,200 in October from
71,900 in September. This was the lowest since June 2020 and also
below the expected level of 71,250.
The pound rose to 1.2368 against the franc and 1.3363 against
the greenback, off its early lows of 1.2287 and 1.3319,
respectively. The pound is seen finding resistance around 1.26
against the franc and 1.35 against the greenback.
The pound was trading at 0.8448 against the euro, up from its
Asian session's low of 0.8484. The pound may possibly face
resistance around the 0.83 level.
The pound rebounded to 151.67 against the yen, after falling to
nearly a 2-month low of 150.69 in the previous session. If the
pound continues its rise, 153.00 is possibly seen as its next
resistance level.
Looking ahead, at 8:00 am ET, German preliminary CPI for
November is scheduled for release.
Canada industrial product price index and U.S. pending home
sales for October will be released in the New York session.
Euro vs Sterling (FX:EURGBP)
Forex Chart
From Mar 2024 to Mar 2024
Euro vs Sterling (FX:EURGBP)
Forex Chart
From Mar 2023 to Mar 2024