FXStreet reported EUR/GBP at 0.8356 at 6:31 a.m. ET Monday, up nearly 0.3%, while separate final surveys from S&P Global showed manufacturing expansion in the euro area and Britain.
The euro-area HCOB Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) finished October at 52.7, above its preliminary 52.4 but below September’s 52.9. S&P Global uses 50 as the threshold between expansion and contraction, so the final reading pointed to continued growth at a slower rate than the previous month.
S&P Global’s final U.K. manufacturing PMI was 52.8, in line with the initial estimate and up from 51.9 in September. Reuters described it as a five-month high and said the output measure showed its fastest growth in two years. Rob Dobson, director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said businesses reported stronger output and new orders amid firmer demand at home and abroad, including from China, the EU and the United States.
Reuters also reported that euro-area manufacturers’ input-cost inflation reached its highest point in five months in October. It said supply delays worsened, with delivery times at their longest since June.
FXStreet’s account associated the currency move with the revised euro-area PMI and a reversal in oil prices. Oil declined Monday amid hopes for progress in U.S.-Iran diplomacy, the Associated Press reported; Reuters described a drop of more than 3% as talks continued.
The pair also tested 0.8400 on Oct. 26, as EconoTimes reported at the time, after rebounding about 0.3% from the previous Friday’s low near 0.8360.
The Bank of England’s next Monetary Policy Committee decision is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 5, according to the bank’s calendar.
