By Jonathan Watson

Sterling has been performing quite poorly of late. A succession of poor data has seemed to imply the UK’s recovery is anything but certain.

We have seen  mortgage approvals and house prices drop and at the moment there is very little to get excited about.

The short term outlook is it will continue. It may be the case however that as other problems arise with the global recovery the UK will again be seen in a better light. As has happened with the slowdon in the US and debt fears in the eurozone.

One of the underlying positives for the UK is that whilst we are significantly in debt as a portion of GDP, the debt has a much longer maturity period. This means that the debt is due to be repaid over a much longer time compared to other countries. This gives us security in that our path to managing and paying off the debt is easier which gives us stability in steering our way through the recovery.

Other strengths include the pound being very weak in comparism to highs of the last two years, which helps boost our exports and makes us a more competitive nation. Whilst this affect will wear off as the currency strengthens, by the time the pound is trading at (if it does) higher levels  it would be because the recovery is underway and this advantage would no longer be so key (because other drivers in the economy such as retail and the domestic service sector would be in play) .

Such rosy times are apparently far off and we are still hearing talks of the global ‘double dip’ – boy, if I had a euro for everytime I heard that phrase!

Nevertheless in such uncertain times working alongisde a specialist currency broker can seriously aid the prospect of securing favourable rates. To find out more about how we can maximise your exchanges please fill in the contact us form and an experienced trader will be in touch.