by David Kerns [email protected]
Head of Private Clients for Moneycorp, one of the UK’s leading foreign exchange and international money transfer providers.
The new coalition government’s first ‘emergency’ budget was most certainly cast in the ‘austerity’ mould.
On the whole, investors were satisfied that it would bring Britain’s budget back into line and prevent the country going bust.
The budget also brought reassurance from the ratings agencies that UK government bonds would retain their top-ranking AAA credit rating.
It confirmed the re-emergence of Sterling as a credible currency, one that investors could buy as well as sell.
Although the Pound has not made a great deal of progress against the Euro since the budget, it has been able to consolidate the gains it achieved in the last few months, now stabilising above 1.20 Euros.
Helping it stay aloft has been the frequent nervousness about the solvency of southern European governments, particularly those in Greece, Portugal and Spain.
Yes, the EU has put together a trillion-dollar safety net to prevent the possibility of their default but investors are still uneasy about its ability to bail out the whole of Club Med if they all hold out their hats.
A successful open-market auction of 3.1 billion Euros of Spanish government bonds in early July helped matters but the market is still edgy.
With flip/flop sentiment driving financial markets it is as hard as ever to predict where Sterling/Euro will be in a week’s time, let alone next year.
However, the chancellor’s recent budget has changed the game for sterling. It is not likely to fly back up to the elevated levels of three years ago but neither does it run the risk of deficit-driven oblivion.
For Sterling-based Britons, a decision to invest in Euro Zone real estate, especially one that might require a mortgage, carries a much lower cash-flow risk today than it has for a long time.
To ensure that you get the best exchange rate when sending money to and from Portugal, speak to a currency specialist.
By doing so you can take advantage of free guidance on the currency markets, making sure you trade at the right time, when the rate is in your favour.
Using a currency specialist – the main benefits:
• Highly competitive exchange rates
• No commission charges
• Fast transfers, low fees
• Ability to fix exchange rates for a set time period, helping protect from adverse currency movements
• Expert guidance from your own dedicated Account Manager
To find out how Moneycorp can help you, save money on your exchange rate, please
click on the Moneycorp button on the right hand side.
