By Lukanyo Mnyanda
Oct. 31 (Bloomberg) -- The pound dropped versus the dollar, heading for the biggest monthly decline in 16 years, as consumer confidence slumped in October amid speculation a recession looms.
The U.K. currency snapped a three-day gain against the dollar after an index of sentiment slid to minus 36, close to the weakest level since at least 1974, as the financial crisis spooked shoppers, GfK NOP said today in a report. A gauge of consumer willingness to make major purchases dropped 11 points to minus 42, the lowest since the series began the same year.
The pound dropped to $1.6241 as of 7:01 a.m. in London, from $1.6451 yesterday. The U.K. currency, higher in the week, is down 8.7 since Sept. 30, the steepest monthly decline since 1992. Against the euro, the British currency climbed to 78.27 pence, rising for a fourth day, and was poised for a second monthly gain.
House prices fell from a year earlier by the most since at least 1991 this month as banks tightened their grip on credit, Nationwide Building Society said yesterday. Policy makers will probably lower the benchmark interest rate by a half point to 4 percent next week, after they voted for an emergency cut on Oct. 8 to save the financial system from collapse, economists say.
Government bonds rose yesterday, with the yield on the two- year gilt sliding 11 basis points to 2.95 percent. The 4.75 percent security due June 2010 gained 0.17, or 1.7 pounds per 1,000-pound ($1,620) face amount, to 102.80. The yield on the 10- year note advanced 4 basis points to 4.44 percent. Both securities were headed for their fourth monthly advance. Bond yields move inversely to prices.
To contact the reporters on this story: Lukanyo Mnyanda in London at lmnyanda@bloomberg.net
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment