British Pound drops to weekly lows below 1.3600 as US Dollar gathers momentum

The British Pound (GBP) experienced its weakest week in over a year on Thursday, as the US Dollar (USD) surged following a robust US inflation report released on Wednesday. The GBP/USD pair hit its lowest level in a week, settling at 1.3675, and opened more than 0.5% lower than the previous day's peak, near the 1.3600 mark. Inflation data released by the US on Wednesday indicated that the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index surged beyond expectations in July, with the annual rate staying unchanged at 3.7%, well above the Federal Reserve's 2% target.

Core PCE inflation also rose at a healthy 3.3%, both figures suggesting the need for the central bank to hike interest rates in the near future. Despite this, bets for a September rate hike remained steady at 36%, according to data from the CME’s FedWatch Tool. Forex experts at ING described the US data as "a mixed bag," providing some support to the dollar but failing to resolve the market's uncertainty about the September FOMC.

The bank remains confident in their prediction for the Fed to hold on 16 September, but warns that the next three weeks may need to bring more convincing data and Fed communications before markets move closer to a hold outcome.