The pound sterling climbed against the dollar and the euro on Monday after US President Donald Trump excluded smartphones and computers from his customs tariffs, offering a certain respite although the uncertainty about trade persists.
The dollar has generally weakened in relation to its main counterparts, nervous investors having withdrawn money from American assets to invest it in other currencies, such as the euro, due to the uncertainty induced by customs duties on the American economy.
Trump said on Sunday that he would announce the rate of customs duties on imported semiconductors in next week, indicating that exemptions for smartphones and computers of his customs duties in China will probably be short-lived.
The Sterling book increased for the fifth consecutive time compared to the greenback and increased by 0.4 % to $ 1,31825, approaching its highest level in six months of $ 1,3207 reached on April 3.
Faced with the euro, the British motto has returned to foot, moving away from its lowest levels of November 2023 observed on Friday.
The euro was down 0.3 % to 86.45 pence. However, the European European currency has increased by more than 3.5 % compared to the book since Trump announced what he calls “reciprocal” customs duties.
“We thought that the pound sterling and the euro would be largely maintained, even if we have seen these major flows of refuge, largely because it is the market bias for many years,” said Nick Rees, responsible for macroeconomic research at Monex Europe.
“As the markets continue to assess, I think, the United Kingdom is likely to become a beneficiary of some of these flows.
The markets are also focusing on employment and inflation data in the United Kingdom, expected this week.
Megan Greene, responsible for fixing interest rates at the Banque d’Engangre, said on Saturday that it was not clear what Trump’s import prices would do to British inflation, the unpredictable behavior of the dollar adding to the enigma.
British Gilts yields fell on Monday after the increase in customs duties imposed by Trump last week. (Report of Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru; writing of Sharon Singleton)
