A resurgence of the Coronavirus pandemic in Great Britain is prompting the government to consider implementing another national lockdown. As a result, the Pound came under pressure against its two key rivals, namely the greenback and Euro. Boris Johnson said that he was considering the measure in the wake of news that Britain is seeing some 6,000 new cases of Covid-19 each day, with admissions at local hospitals doubling in slightly more than a week's time. The fear is that the health care system in the UK would buckle under the weight of all new admissions. Recently, the government had been encouraging workers to go back to their jobs, in the hope that the UK economy would be revived. But the threat of further spreading of the virus is putting the back-to-work pressure to the back burner.
As of 11:06 am in London, the GBP/USD was trading lower at $1.285, down 0.5095% and off the session peak of $1.29672. The EUR/GBP was higher at 0.9172 Pence, up 0.0556%; the pair has ranged from a session trough of 0.91461 Pence to a peak of 0.91979 Pence. The GBP/JPY was also lower at 133.817 Yen, down 0.9314% and off the session high of 135.373 Yen.
Central Bank Heads in Focus
Central bank leadership is due to take the markets' focus beginning later today with the European Central Bank's President, Christine Lagarde. That speech will be followed tomorrow by another from the Bank of England's Governor, Andrew Bailey, and the Federal Reserve's Chief, Jerome Powell. All three will likely discuss how the monetary policy will likely shift to accommodate the repercussions of their respective economies as a result of the pandemic. What market players will hope to hear is a clue as to the banks' thinking in the way of interest rate sentiment and an accommodative policy.