Sterling strengthens on retail sales data

Story link: Sterling strengthens on retail sales data

By early afternoon in New York on Thursday, the US dollar had risen slightly in relation to the yen, euro, and sterling. The greenback had weakened on Wednesday afternoon after the US Federal reserve voted to keep interest rates at 5.25 percent and omitted any language that would indicate it is ready to raise rates anytime soon. The euro was at $1.3330 to the dollar, while sterling traded at $1.9643 to the dollar and the yen was worth ¥118.15 to the US dollar.

At midday in London, sterling was stronger. The UK currency was up 0.3 percent to £0.6780 versus the euro, while it added 0.4 percent to ¥231.50 against the yen. The gains came on new data showing that retail sales in the UK were up by 1.4 percent in February, making back most of the decline in January sales.

Meanwhile, the yen was even at ¥157.40 versus the euro but dropped in relation to the Australian and New Zealand dollars. Then Australian dollar traded at ¥94.95 to the yen, a gain of 0.6 percent for the Aussie, while the New Zealand dollar was 0.7 percent higher versus the yen, to ¥83.70, The yen continued to be popular for funding high-risk carry trades.