Mavridis takes over as Cablenet, ’s new CEO
Ioannis Mavridis is being promoted to CEO of Cablenet, replacing Yiannos Michaelides who is stepping down after four years.
sterling
Sterling holds ground on weaker dollar, Fed, rate decision looms
The GBPUSD pair is holding positive ground near 1.2520 in early trading in Asia, supported by a softer US Dollar. The US Federal Reserve is expected to leave interest rates unchanged, with speculation that the first cut might not come until September. The Bank of England may start lowering borrowing costs in its June meeting, as Governor Andrew Bailey mentioned the possibility of two or three rate cuts this year.
New round of compensation coming from north, ’s property commission
The ‘government’ in the north has secured £68 million sterling (€79 million) to pay compensation to Greek Cypriots who applied to the Immovable Property Commission (IPC) and whose claims were processed by the end of 2020.
Euro, Sterling under pressure after mixed Eurozone, UK PMI
The EURGBP cross traded lower around 0.8620 on Tuesday following mixed PMI figures from the UK and Eurozone.
European stocks gain, dollar strong as traders cut Fed easing bets
European stocks were on track to outperform Wall Street on Friday due to high demand for exporter shares as major currencies in the continent dropped against a strong dollar.
Currency markets are in a deep freeze. Rate cuts and Trump could thaw them
Traders and investors are looking to global interest rate cuts and the closely-fought US election to bring the world’s currency markets out of their deepest lull in almost four years.
Illness, scandal and discord leave UK royal family looking depleted
King Charles is set to make his first public appearance at a royal event since his cancer diagnosis on Sunday. Prince William, Kate, and their children will not attend due to Princess Diana’s cancer treatment. The royal family has been depleted with the departure of Prince Harry and Meghan, as well as Prince Andrew’s banishment. Princess Anne is one of the hardest-working royals, but there is pressure on certain members to continue their duties. The monarchy is facing challenges with a shrinking support base and a lean lineup of working royals.
UK economy went into recession last year, data confirms
Britain’s economy entered a shallow recession last year, with GDP shrinking by 0.1% in the third quarter and 0.3% in the fourth. The economy is expected to grow by just 0.25% this year, with inflation moving towards the point where the Bank of England can start cutting rates. Household real disposable income grew by 0.7%, prompting consumers to potentially increase spending and support the economy. The current account deficit in the fourth quarter was 21.18 billion pounds, equivalent to 3.1% of GDP.
Sterling bows to dollar strength after UK GDP data
The pound eased after data confirmed the UK economy entered recession in the second half of last year.
Sterling hovers near one-month low on rate cut bets
– The pound was stable on Monday, close to its lowest level in a month, due to increased bets that the Bank of England (BoE) will cut interest rates in June.
– Sterling was flat at .2608, near the one-month low of .2576 from the previous Friday.
– The euro was slightly changed against the pound at 85.79 pence, down from a two-month high of 86.02 pence on Friday.
– The pound fell approximately 1% against the dollar last week after the BoE maintained interest rates at 5.25% and Governor Bailey indicated that inflation is trending towards allowing for interest rate cuts.
– Bailey’s comments to the Financial Times about rate cuts being “in play” this year further decreased the pound’s value.
– Market traders now estimate a roughly 75% chance of a BoE rate cut by June, an increase from about 35% at the beginning of the previous week, influenced by data showing faster-than-expected inflation decline.
– Chris Turner from ING suggested that the BoE’s dovish communications could lead to the euro rising to 87 pence against the pound in the next month.
– In contrast, stronger-than-expected U.S. economic and inflation data has led to reduced expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut in June, enhancing the appeal of American bonds and supporting the dollar.
– The dollar index was approximately flat at 104.38 on Monday, after a 1% increase the previous week.