As another week draws to a close, Cable has tumbled to fresh monthly lows as it edges closer to the 1.3700 barrier. Better than expected PMI figures from the Eurozone yesterday helped the Euro make advances on both Sterling and the US Dollar. From Germany, Markit Manufacturing PMI for June came out 0.2 better than forecasted, with a figure of 63.4. The Eurozone as whole had an impressive show of form on Thursday as Manufacturing PMI and the Unemployment Rate both exceeded forecasts. PMI for June came in at 63.4 and Unemployment fell to 7.9%.
In contrast, the US had a rather dismal day yesterday in regard to data. The most anticipated US releases yesterday, Markit PMI and ISM PMI, both came in under forecast. Markit Manufacturing PMI gave a final reading of 62.1 and ISM Manufacturing PMI came in at 60.6.
GBPUSD was unable to sustain itself above the 1.3800 handle on Thursday. Despite Cable opening at 1.3812, the pair went on to finish the session at 1.3780.
GBPEUR also faced downside pressures as positive economic data helped strengthen the Euro. The pair opened the day at 1.1663 and closed at 1.1612.
EURUSD was able to make subtle gains on Thursday. The pair started the day at 1.1842 and finished at 1.1867.
As for data releases today, the focus remains on the United States. From 13:30 there are a plethora of US releases, with Non-Farm Payrolls and Unemployment Rate being the focus. Non-Farm Payroll are expected to give a figure of 700K, with a previous of 559K. As for the Unemployment Rate, forecasts hope it can make 0.1% improvement from last month and come in at 5.7%.
