The Pound Sterling hit a new 7-month trough versus the US Dollar on worries that the most recent developments in the Brexit negotiations will not pass through the UK Parliament. The Prime Minister has proposed her EU withdrawal bill to the Lower House of Commons. If the Lower House does vote against the bill, analysts say that so long as the whole Parliament at least has the ability to vote then the chances for a disorderly Brexit will likely be diminished.
As reported at 10:46 am (BST) in London, the GBP/USD was trading at $1.3167, down 0.04%; the pair earlier hit a session trough of $1.3147 while the high is at $1.3178. The EUR/GBP is trading at 0.87878 Pence, down 0.06%; the pair has ranged from a session low of 0.87735 Pence to a high of 0.88012 Pence.
BoE Decision Eyed
Also weighing on the Pound is tomorrow's Bank of England policy decision; though the latest poll suggests that monetary policy and interest rates will remain unchanged, some analysts are concerned that a dovish undertone is creeping in among the more hawkish members and that the consideration for an August rate increase might now be waning. If the Monetary Policy Committee surprises with a solid discussion for an August rate hike that could prop up the Pound in the short term; however, market figures suggest that the likelihood of a rate increase in August is only at about 40% now, with a higher probability of about 80% for a rate increase by the end of the year.