GBP/USD has started the week with considerable losses. In North American trade, the pair is trading at 1.2880, down 0.62% on the day. On the release front, British Manufacturing PMI dropped to 52.8, missing the estimate of 53.9 points. There are no U.S events, with markets closed for Labor Day. On Tuesday, the UK releases Construction PMI and BoE Governor Mark Carney will testify before Parliament’s Treasury Committee. In the U.S, the key event is ISM Manufacturing PMI.
The pound has lost ground for a third straight day, as investors reacted negatively to a soft manufacturing PMI in August. The indicator dropped to its lowest level since July 2016, which was right after the Brexit referendum. A drop in exports in August was a key factor in the PMI downturn, which slipped from 54.0 to 52.8 points. With the global economy showing signs of a slowdown and the lack of clarity over Brexit, Britain’s manufacturing sector could run into further headwinds during the next several months.
Investors are keeping a nervous eye on the tariff spat between China and the U.S. So far, the two economic giants have imposed $50 billion in tariffs on each other, and President Trump has threatened further tariffs worth some $200 billion, which could be imposed as early as this week. The U.S could elect to impose the tariffs in smaller bites, such as a $50 billion tariff. With the U.S economy booming, there is little pressure on the Trump administration to shy away from imposing further tariffs. The current trade spat has already seen the U.S dollar gain ground against the pound and further tariffs could boost the U.S dollar.
