Pound Falls as Retail Sales Decline. More Stimulus Ahead?

Great Britain pound fell today, dropping to its lowest level in almost two months against the U.S. dollar after the report showed that retail sales in the UK fell in August, spurring speculation that the central bank of Great Britain is required to stimulate the economy.

British Retail Consortium said today that values ​​the UK retail sales 0.6 percent lower on a peer to peer basis from August 2010. The previous reading showed a growth of 0.6 percent. Helen Dickinson, head of retail at KPMG, commented on negative data:


The weaker sectors are really struggling. For non-food, the picture is disheartening with one of the worst monthly results of the year thus far — toiletries, cosmetics, and menswear the only sectors showing growth.


This week the reports were unfavorable macroeconomic traders speculate that the Bank of England will announce a quantitative analysis at its next meeting. Manufacturer of policy the Bank of England will meet on September 8 to discuss monetary policy and announce its asset purchase plan. The pound fell by 6 percent a year ago and was one of the worst performing major currency, exceeded only by the dollar fell 9.7 percent.


GBP/USD slumped from 1.6116 to 1.5936 as of 16:58 GMT today and touched 1.5920, the lowest price since July 13. GBP/JPY traded at about 123.59 after jumping from 123.87 to 125.05.