GBP Plunges to Fresh Lows on Mixed Employment Data
The British Pound (GBP) fell to new lows near $1.3520 against the US Dollar (USD) on Tuesday due to mixed UK employment data, which failed to convince investors in a risk-off market.
June's UK unemployment data showed that the ILO Unemployment Rate remained steady at 4.9% in the three months to June, missing expectations of a decline to 4.8%. The number of people employed increased by 83K, well below the 147K rise posted in May.
On the positive side, unemployment claims declined by 11K, contrary to expectations of an 11.2K increase following a downwardly revised 6.4K decline in the previous month. Wage inflation accelerated, with Average Earnings Excluding Bonus increasing by a 3.5% yearly rate in the three months to June.
Rising geopolitical tensions are also supporting the US Dollar, as the Memorandum of Understanding between the US and Iran signed in June ended on Monday, with the peace process stalled and Washington and Tehran ramping up their rhetoric.