Britain’s trade balance significantly squeezed and fell to 7.6 billion pounds in October. This was better than a deficit of 9.5 billion that was expected.Â
The drop came after Britain’s deficit reached double digits in September and hit 10.2 billion. 9.8 was the original figure, now revised to the downside. The current improvement could help GDP for the fourth quarter.
GBP/USD is climbing very gradually, rising to 1.5650. It got a blow yesterday from the ECB, that didn’t pledge enough support to help resolve the euro-zone debt crisis.
Also in Britain, PPI Input rose by 0.1%, less than 0.3% that was predicted. Prodcuer prices dropped by 0.8% in the previous month. PPI Output rose by 0.2% as expected.
The CB Leading Index fell by 0.4% – the third drop in a row. This compound figure is based on 7 economic indicators.
More news from the EU Summit in Brussels are awaited, but the current situation looks like a failure for the euro-zone and for the whole world. Regarding Britain, it didn’t join the pledge for treaty changes and could find itself isolated.
For more on the pound, see the GBP/USD forecast.
