Sterling/Euro Rates Stable for Property Buyers in Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Greece

Latest news from Halo Financial on currency exchanges for the Euro for those Uk clients buying properties in Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Greece.
Airborne volcanic ash is still the main news item after a very quiet weekend for British and most European skies. If you believe what you read in the weekend newspapers, Nick Clegg has single-handedly changed the face of British Politics and no one in Britain is voting for anyone else; at least that’s what I think they said. Oh and Jensen Button accompanied Lewis Hamilton across the line in the Chinese Grand Prix for a fantastic British 1 - 2. You see; you didn’t need to read the papers, I have summed it up in one paragraph and managed to ignore the depressing stuff.
As for the financial markets, risk is a dirty word this morning as traders and investors run for cover after the US regulators announced they are prosecuting Goldman Sachs for misstating details on some of the Securitised Investment Vehicles (mortgage backed securities) they sold in the heady days before the market in these products collapsed and the world economy followed suit. This opens up the potential for further prosecutions but there has been no word on whether the credit ratings agencies will be sued as well; if you remember, these guys were valuing these SIVs as 'triple A' right up until the collapse.
Investors are also nervous about the future of the Chinese economy though after the level of home loans were curbed by the authorities. Apart from this being a signal that China will continue to try to calm their overheating economy, it is likely to have a knock on effect on raw material prices; especially things like copper and the raw materials for steel and concrete. So watch the Australian Dollar closely because if China adds further tightening measures, we might just see a glimmer of hope for those who need to buy Australian and New Zealand Dollars and would dearly love more attractive prices than these.
In other news, the Ernst & Young Item Club is predicting slim growth for Britain in 2010 followed by a stronger return to more normal levels of growth in 2011. That is perhaps why the Pound hasn’t fallen further after the prospects for a hung parliament loomed ever closer. A round robin of the various opinion polls over the weekend does suggest support for the three main parties is fairly evenly split and that is not liked by the financial markets. Neither will they be keen on the fact that this Friday brings the 1st estimate of UK economic growth during the first three months of 2010. The 1st estimate is based on just 40% of all available data but it is still closely followed; especially after the slim growth in Q4 2009. Most commentators are forecasting something around 0.4% growth for Q1 but as we saw last time, there can be a fair old variation in this first guess so the lead up to Friday could be a very edgy time for the Pound. We will get UK inflation, retail sales, unemployment data, the minutes from the last Bank of England meeting, money supply data and government debt levels before then so this could well be one of the Pound’s busiest weeks of the year.
I guess it wouldn’t be a Daily Currency Insight without some mention of Greece so I would hate to break with recent tradition. Greece is looking ever more likely to draw on some of the funds being made available to her from the EU and International Monetary Funds. However, we will have to wait for the Icelandic ash to dissipate before the interested parties can get together to discuss it in Athens. Have these people never heard of telephones? In the interim, the Euro will have a fair bit to contend with during the week; not least the raft of speeches by EU central bankers on Wednesday. At least they should be able to drive or catch trains to their destination in Frankfurt even if the skies are still off limits although knowing how the EU works, there will probably be a special dispensation for these guys while everyone else sits and fumes.
And that is about that for this Monday. This week does bring its fair share of data and plenty of reasons for volatility so don’t worry, it will be lively; a bit more lively in fact than the mayor of Tracy City, Tennessee, Carl Geary who sadly died whilst campaigning to become mayor and was therefore no longer alive when the votes were cast but who was returned to the position with a landslide majority. It reminds me of the story about a New York media agent who, when he was told Elvis Presley had died was reported to have said, “Great Career move”.