British pound falls lower against dollar, euro

LONDON: The pound has fallen below $1.29 for the first time in almost a year on continuing worries Britain will leave the EU without a trade deal.

Sterling also hit a nine-month low against the euro, and was down against the yen and Swiss franc, BBC reported on Thursday. Bank of England governor Mark Carney said last Friday the chances of a no-deal Brexit were uncomfortably high.

Since the beginning of the month, the pound has fallen 1.7 per cent against the dollar and 0.8 per cent against the euro.

Nomura strategist Jordan Rochester added, “We remain bearish on the pound in the short term until the Brexit mess is out the way. ”

A cheaper pound makes anything bought by foreign exchange, more expensive. But it makes UK exports more competitive. In the first three months of the year, the UK exported a record 87 billion pounds in goods , following a year in which they hit an all-time annual high of 338.9 billon pounds.. (IANS)