- UK services PMI rises to 53.3 in August, beating estimates.
- UK manufacturing PMI rises to 52.5 in August.
- GBP/USD extends gains above 1.3100 following upbeat UK business PMIs.
The S&P Global/CIPS seasonally adjusted UK manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) improved to 52.5 in August from 52.1 in July. Markets had expected a reading of 52.1.
Meanwhile, the preliminary UK Services Business Activity Index rose to 53.3 in August, compared with 52.5 in July and the estimated figure of 52.8.
Commenting on the preliminary PMI data, Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said: “August is seeing a welcome combination of stronger economic growth, improving job creation and lower inflation, according to preliminary PMI survey data.”
“Both manufacturing and services sectors are reporting solid output growth and rising job creation as business confidence remains elevated by historical standards,” Chris added.
Implications on the foreign exchange market
GBP/USD gets a fresh bid to hit an intraday high of 1.3114 following strong UK PMI data. The pair is trading 0.15% higher on the day, at the time of writing.
Pound Sterling PRICE Today
The table below shows the exchange rate of the British Pound (GBP) against major currencies today. The British Pound was the strongest currency against the Japanese Yen.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.02% | -0.15% | 0.16% | -0.15% | -0.12% | -0.18% | -0.26% | |
| EUR | -0.02% | -0.18% | 0.13% | -0.19% | -0.13% | -0.22% | -0.28% | |
| GBP | 0.15% | 0.18% | 0.31% | -0.01% | 0.03% | -0.05% | -0.12% | |
| JPY | -0.16% | -0.13% | -0.31% | -0.42% | -0.29% | -0.38% | -0.45% | |
| CAD | 0.15% | 0.19% | 0.00% | 0.42% | 0.04% | -0.04% | -0.11% | |
| AUD | 0.12% | 0.13% | -0.03% | 0.29% | -0.04% | -0.08% | -0.16% | |
| NZD | 0.18% | 0.22% | 0.05% | 0.38% | 0.04% | 0.08% | -0.08% | |
| CHF | 0.26% | 0.28% | 0.12% | 0.45% | 0.11% | 0.16% | 0.08% |
The heatmap shows percentage changes of major currencies. The base currency is selected from the left column, while the quote currency is selected from the top row. For example, if you choose the British Pound from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change shown in the chart will represent the GBP (base)/USD (quote).
Source: Fx Street
I am Joshua Winder, a senior-level journalist and editor at World Stock Market. I specialize in covering news related to the stock market and economic trends. With more than 8 years of experience in this field, I have become an expert in financial reporting.
