Oil Prices Drop as U.S.-Iran Talks Ease Supply Concerns 
Canada Imposes 10% Tariff on Canned Vegetable Imports to Protect Domestic Industry 
US Stock Futures Slip After Wall Street Rally Fueled by US-Iran Deal and Chipmaker Surge 
Oil Prices Steady as U.S.-Iran Truce Uncertainty and Middle East Tensions Keep Markets on Edge 
BOJ Signals More Rate Hikes as Inflation Risks Rise Amid Energy Price Pressures 
Asian Stocks Surge as Oil Prices Fall and Strong US Dollar Weighs on Markets 
Dollar Holds Firm as U.S.-Iran Talks Ease Tensions, GBP/USD Slips Amid UK Political Uncertainty 
German Industry Employment Falls to Lowest Level in a Decade 
Italy’s Economy Outpaces Eurozone Peers as Investment Spending Fuels Growth 
China Keeps Loan Prime Rates Unchanged for 13th Straight Month as Policymakers Prioritize Credit Demand Recovery 
The National Institute of Economic and Social Research lowered the growth prospects of the United Kingdom in its latest report released today. I said that after growing 0.6 percent in the last quarter, the UK economy slowed a little in the first three months of this year and grew by 0.5 percent. “We estimate growth slowed slightly in the first quarter of 2017 to 0.5 percent. A key component of this moderation has been relatively weak retail sales in the first two months of this year. Consumption is expected to moderate further this year as increasing inflation erodes households’ purchasing power. We expect the Bank of England to look through this temporary shock to inflation and for monetary policy to remain accommodative.”
The pound has declined after the report and currently trading at 1.244 against the dollar. A weaker dollar could provide some support to the pound but the currency remains vulnerable to Brexit blows. We expect the pound to decline further in the near term, possibly towards 1.17 area. Unless the currency clears key resistance around 1.28 against the dollar, the prospect of further upside is limited.
