As the week came to a close, the Pound dipped through trading on Friday as a result of Brexit concerts. It slipped against both the Euro and the US dollar, finishing the day at 1.1097 and 1.309 respectively. This all came as a result of a Brexit trade deal being unlikely according to Michael Barnier, the EU’s Chief Negotiator. Along with this, employment concerns also hampered the performance of the Pound on the Foreign Exchange Market despite business activity growing through August.
On Friday, the Euro took a defensive stance following the PMI releases from the Eurozone. The single currency didn’t appeal to investors as preliminary figures for August were lower than expected. This indicates that the recovery of the Eurozone economy is slower than expected and might have stalled as a result of the current increase in coronavirus cases.
The US Dollar was the stand out currency on Friday as it performed exceptionally well with demand increasing following the release of US data. A weak Pound and Euro also meant that the Pound / US Dollar exchange rate also dropped. PMI figures and home sales were all better than expected, ensuring that the safe-haven currency strengthened as the week came to an end.