Sterling drops versus yen, dollar and Swiss Franc after Russian warning
Nov 19 (Reuters) – The pound dropped to multi-week lows versus the yen and the Swiss Franc as investors rushed into safe-haven assets, after a warning from Russia over its updated nuclear doctrine.
It fell versus the dollar after briefly breaking a 6-day falling streak the day before.
President Vladimir Putin issued a warning to the United States on Tuesday, lowering the threshold for a nuclear strike just days after the administration of Joe Biden reportedly allowed Ukraine to fire American missiles deep into Russia.
Investors bought into safe-haven currencies after Putin’s warning, with analysts arguing markets had been too complacent about geopolitical risks.
They perceive sterling as a risky currency, while the so-called safe-haven assets are seen as stable and reliable stores of value when markets are experiencing instability.
The pound dropped 0.9% versus yen to 193.49, its lowest level since Oct. 8; it fell 0.4% against the Swiss Franc to 1.1140, its lowest since Nov. 1.
It was down 0.4% versus the greenback at $1.2628.
Barring geopolitical turmoil, several analysts expect the pound to strengthen against the euro as the UK is unlikely to be the focal point for the incoming U.S. administration.
Investors expect the British economy to suffer less from the adverse impact of Trump’s policies as the President-elect said he was ready to impose tariffs on China and the euro area.
Markets await inflation data on Wednesday, which could provide clues about the Bank of England’s monetary path.
“Inflation data will be crucial for the next moves of the pound,” said Francesco Pesole, forex strategist at ING.
ING said it expected a substantial slowdown to 4.3% in core services inflation, adding it wouldn’t be enough to “bring a December rate cut back into play.”
The BoE’s most recently appointed interest rate-setter Alan Taylor said the central bank’s gradual approach to cutting rates was in line with recent market pricing.
Governor Andrew Bailey said the BoE needs to move gradually.
The euro recently hit its lowest level since April 2022 on the monetary policy divergence.
Markets priced in a European Central Bank deposit facility rate at 1.83% by the end of 2025 from the current 3.25%.
The single currency was down 0.05% to 83.55 pence per pound. It hit 82.58 last week, its lowest since April 2022.
Resource from Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/sterling-drops-versus-yen-dollar-swiss-franc-after-russian-warning-2024-11-19/