The Pound Sterling to Malaysian Ringgit (GBP/MYR) exchange rate edged higher on Friday morning.
The British Pound rallied versus many of its currency rivals during Friday’s European session. The appreciation can be linked to better-than-expected results from domestic data. BBA Loans for House Purchase was forecast to rise from 42876 to 43300 in June, but the actual result showed mortgage approvals climbed to 44488. Additional Sterling gains can be attributed to speculation that the Bank of England (BoE) will look to hike the benchmark interest rate at a similar time to the Federal Reserve.
Commenting on the Loans for House Purchase data, BBA stated; ‘Mortgage approvals were around 8% higher in June than at the same time last year (after allowing for the effects of the change in mortgage rules). Within that, remortgaging was some 20% higher, probably reflecting borrowers’ appetite to lock in to current fixed rates and gain certainty over their future outgoings. Lending to larger companies continues to be subdued, as alternative capital market finance grew by some £8.9 billion in the first half of 2015. The proportion of active credit card accounts is at its highest for 4 years.’
The Pound Sterling to Malaysian Ringgit (GBP/MYR) exchange rate is currently trending in the region of 5.9098.
The Malaysian Ringgit declined versus many of its currency rivals during Friday’s European session. The depreciation was the result of a rise in unemployment, albeit a fractional one. May’s Unemployment Rate was forecast to hold at 3%, but the actual result rose to 3.1%. The Department of Statistics Malaysia stated; ‘The unemployment rate rose 0.1 percentage points to 3.1 per cent in May 2015 compared to the previous month. Meanwhile, year-on-year comparison showed that the unemployment rate was increased by 0.2 percentage points. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.1 per cent, remained as the same rate in the previous month.’
In addition to disappointing unemployment data, the Ringgit declined in response to US Dollar strength. As traders prepare for a Federal Reserve benchmark rate hike towards the end of 2015, demand for emerging-market currencies will continue to dampen.
The Pound Sterling to Malaysian Ringgit (GBP/MYR) exchange rate was trending within the range of 5.8983 to 5.9262 during Friday’s European session.
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