The Pound stood firm during trading on Thursday after the Confederation of British Industry announced that factories in the UK had experienced the fastest growth since 2018.
This helped to alleviate any concerns around the spread of the Indian coronavirus variant, which might have pushed the currency lower. At the end of trading, sterling finished the day at 1.1604 against the Euro and 104188 against the US Dollar according to the Foreign Exchange Market.
There were some modest gains for the Euro yesterday as it took advantage of a weakened US Dollar as a result of negative correlation between the two currencies. Helping to boost the single currency was an improvement in mood as the vaccination programme continues to roll on and more economies open up.
It was a difficult day for the US Dollar as an improvement in market mood meant that the appeal of the safe-haven currency remained relatively subdued. However, any losses were restricted thanks to the news that US jobless claims last week fell even further. However, looking ahead, a decision by the Federal Reserve to taper its bond purchases will have an impact on the US Dollar.