Markets digest ECB cuts sterling puts on early morning rally

Fiona Cincotta
By :  ,  Senior Market Analyst
With no new political developments on Thursday traders were focusing on the ECB, which cut rates in a nod to the increased danger of a recession. Yesterday the ECB cut its deposit rate by 10 basis points, which was in line with market expectations. Currently markets are not sure whether to cheer or cry about this. Sterling has been on a steady surge against the USD since 0600 this morning, up from the 1.235 overnight level to hit 1.240 before any significant sell orders came in. There has also been some serious interest in favour of GBP/EUR.

Asian markets positive on back of interim deal rumour

In Asia stocks were higher today although China, South Korea and Taiwan are closed for the mid-autumn festival. The Nikkei was up 0.8% in late trading and the Hang Seng was up nearly 1%.

Asian markets seemed cautiously positive about the ECB decision and are currently trading at a six-week high. There are also reports that the US government may be close to announcing some form of interim trade deal with China.

FTSE up led by Pearson


The FTSE opened slightly down this morning. Pearson was the leading stock out of the gates, putting on more than 3%. This seems to be largely on the back of a new buy note for the company from Citigroup. Compass Group and RELX were early fallers.

Please note these products may not be available to trade in all regions.

Related tags: Euro Forex

Open an account today

Experience award-winning platforms with fast and secure execution.

Web Trader platform

Our sophisticated web-based platform is packed with features.
Economic Calendar