Currencies Forex GBPUSD Spotlights

GBP/USD: UK Economy Flatlines but Exits Covid Slump

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The sterling moved higher early on Thursday after the UK’s GDP data came in flat month-on-month.

The GBP/USD pair advanced to levels above $1.25 on Thursday after GDP data showed the UK economy failed to expand, but also didn’t contract. On a monthly basis, the British economy flatlined at 0.0% growth compared to where it was in January.

What’s even better, it was an upside revision to 0.4% growth in January that rendered February’s data unchanged. In other words, the updated figures pushed the UK’s gross domestic product to its pre-pandemic levels by a total of 0.3%. Still, the UK’s recovery remains fairly weak compared to wider Europe.

In that context, the British pound has been pushing strongly to the upside. The GBP/USD exchange rate is up more than 6%, or 700 pips, from where it was a month ago. On the other end of the trade, the dollar slipped broadly on Wednesday after a report showed US inflation cooled to 5.0% in March.

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