BLBG:Pound Rises to Two-Month High Against Euro as Cypriot Banks Open
The pound rose to the strongest level in two months against the euro as Cyprus’s banks prepared to open for the first time since the nation agreed a European Union bailout that enforced a raid on deposits.
Sterling gained versus the dollar for the first time in four days as a report showed U.K. consumer confidence was unchanged for a third month in March. The Central Bank of Cyprus’s capital controls will include a 300-euro ($383) daily limit on withdrawals and restrictions on transfers to accounts outside the country. Gauges on the outlook for the economy and personal finances both fell.
The pound appreciated 0.3 percent to 84.26 pence per euro at 9:03 a.m. London time after appreciating to 84.22 pence, the strongest level since Jan. 24. The U.K. currency gained 0.1 percent to $1.5149.
Sterling has gained 0.4 percent in the past month, according to Bloomberg Correlation-Weighted Indexes, which track 10 developed-nation currencies. The euro lost 2 percent and the dollar climbed 0.5 percent.
U.K. government bonds were little changed, with the 10-year gilt yield at 1.72 percent. The 1.75 percent bond due September 2022 gained 0.06, or 60 pence per 1,000-pound face amount, to 100.30. The yield fell earlier to 1.71 percent, the least since Nov. 13.
A U.K. sentiment index by GfK NOP Ltd. stayed at minus 26, the London-based group said in a report today. Economists had forecast a decline to minus 27, according to the median of 19 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey.
To contact the reporter on this story: Lukanyo Mnyanda in Edinburgh at lmnyanda@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Paul Dobson at pdobson2@bloomberg.net
