The GBP/USD exchange rate rose quite a bit in the wake of slightly weaker Britain's Services PMI data. However, the Sterling accelerated gains against the US Dollar after the UK inflation report hearings and continued reflecting bullish sentiment in the pair.
Markit reported that its PMI for Britain's services sector declined more than estimated to the 53.2 mark in August, reaching the lowest level since September 2016. The slowdown suggested muted growth in new orders, as lingering uncertainty and weak confidence caused delays in decisions on spending. Overall business expectations were upbeat, though further concerns surrounding the UK political and economic outlook remained on the table.
| Historical Data Table: UK Services PMI | |||||
| Date | 04.06.2017 | 05.06.2017 | 05.07.2017 | 03.08.2017 | 05.09.2017 |
| Actual | 55.8 | 53.8 | 53.4 | 53.8 | 53.2 |
| Forecast | 54.6 | 55.1 | 53.6 | 53.6 | 53.5 |
| Initial Reaction on Main Pairs | |||||
| Open Price | Close Price | % Change | |||
| GBP/USD | 1.62206 | 1.62187 | -0.01% | ||
| EUR/GBP | 1.1881 | 1.18818 | 0.01% | ||
| GBP/CAD | 1.6027 | 1.60241 | -0.02% | ||
| GBP/JPY | 141.486 | 141.475 | -0.01% | ||