The GBP/USD fell from the intraday high after the report on Tuesday indicated contraction in the UK construction sector. The Sterling lost 29 base points or 0.22% to continue losing ground, finishing the trading session near the 1.3249 mark. Though, the currency pair jumped back to the 1.3260 area this morning.
The UK construction firms reported that activity fell dramatically in September to the lowest level since after the Brexit vote, putting the construction PMI reading to 48.1 points in the reported period, down from 51.1 registered in August. Though, construction makes up to 6% of the country's GDP, the results suggested it could drag on Q3 figures, just as the Bank of England will be ready for the interest rate hike.
| Historical Data Table: UK Construction PMI | |||||
| Date | 02.06.2017 | 04.07.2017 | 02.08.2017 | 04.09.2017 | 03.10.2017 |
| Actual | 56 | 54.8 | 51.9 | 51.1 | 48.1 |
| Forecast | 52.7 | 55 | 54.3 | 51.9 | 51.1 |
| Initial Reaction on Main Pairs | |||||
| Open Price | Close Price | % Change | |||
| GBP/USD | 1.32782 | 1.3249 | -0.22% | ||
| EUR/GBP | 0.88424 | 0.88588 | 0.19% | ||
| GBP/CAD | 1.66196 | 1.65877 | -0.19% | ||
| GBP/JPY | 150.078 | 149.777 | -0.20% | ||