The goodwill that the Fannie and Freddie deal cast over the world has all but dissipated and we are right back to where we were on Friday; strong dollar and falling oil and commodity prices. Although we agree with predictions that in the short term riskier assets, in the currency world being high-yielders, may see a bounce the trend is still very much towards slowing worldwide growth and interest rate cuts.

Overnight data for the UK was mixed and we even got some good news from the housing market which has been as rare as the proverbial for months. Fewer surveyors reported falling prices in August than as compared to July however we would hazard a guess that this may just be due to people not willing to cut any more than any improvement in sentiment. Sales however were poor as RICS reported that the average UK estate agents’ office is selling just 1 property a week.

We are also hearing reports that Chancellor Darling is set to announce plans to stimulate the UK housing market today in his speech to unions later.

———————-

 Please feel free to contact me (jeremy.cook@worldfirst.com) if you have any questions or thoughts regarding these updates or if you are interested in a particular event in the calendar. If you would like to discuss your foreign exchange requirements, please contact our:Corporate Foreign Exchange Team on 020 7801 9050 or our Private Client Currency Exchange Team on 020 7801 9080.   

Disclaimer: The above comments are only our views and should not be construed as advice. You should act using your own information and judgement. Although information has been obtained from and is based upon multiple sources the author believes to be reliable, we do not guarantee its accuracy and it may be incomplete or condensed. All opinions and estimates constitute the author’s own judgement as of the date of the briefing and are subject to change without notice.Any rates given are “interbank” i.e. for amounts of £5million and thus are not indicative of rates offered by World First for smaller amounts. E&OE. Definitions of jargon/market terms can be found in our Glossary of Foreign Exchange Terms.