The Sterling rises against the Dollar as signs the economy is recovering

The pound climbed against the dollar after reports on jobs, manufacturing, house prices and retail sales added to evidence the U.K. economy is past the worst of the slump. The British currency also gained versus the euro as the Office for National Statistics said the number of people claiming jobless benefits rose less than forecast and industrial production dropped. A Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors report showed the number of real-estate agents and surveyors saying prices fell exceeded those reporting gains by the least since January 2008. “The numbers were better than expected and there’s some relief in the market that things aren’t getting worse,” said Elisabeth Andreew, chief currency strategist at Nordea Bank AB in Copenhagen. “There’s some optimism coming back, leading to pound buying.” The GBP/USD is currently trading at $1.5265 as of 8:40am, London Time.

The dollar fell against a basket of currencies and versus the euro on Wednesday, facing renewed selling amid a recovery in risk appetite that has curbed safe-haven buying of dollars. Traders said the dollar also came under pressure due to an opinion story in the Financial Times that touched on the risk of the United States losing its triple-A credit rating and refocused attention on rising U.S. debt issuance. "Concerns related to dollar funding have receded somewhat, and the focus turned towards topics that are negative for the United States such as the fiscal deficit," Nagasaki said for a Japanese trust bank. The EUR/USD is currently trading at $1.3690 as of 9:03am, London Time.

Canada’s currency strengthened against its U.S. counterpart as stocks erased earlier losses and commodities including crude oil and gold gained. “With the rally in the stock market and higher commodity prices, it’s all good for risk-driven currencies like the Canadian,” said Fabian Eliasson, vice president of currency sales at Mizuho Corporate Bank Ltd. in New York. “People are gravitating to riskier assets.” Canadian bankruptcies jumped 52 percent in March from a year ago as more consumers struggled to pay their bills amid the country’s first recession since 1992. The number of bankruptcies filed by consumers and businesses in Canada rose to 11,085, the country’s bankruptcy superintendent reported on its Web site. The USD/CAD is currently trading at 1.1575 as of 9:10am, London Time.

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