Sterling rises above $1.39 as the vaccine programme raises hopes that lockdown can be eased.
Read morePound Sterling (GBP)
GBP/EUR - Today's data summary
% change
+0.15%
Price Euros
1.1573
Change
+0.0020
As of 01:02 22 Feb 2021
GBP/JPY - Today's data summary
% change
+0.23%
Price Yen
147.9790
Change
+0.3330
As of 01:05 22 Feb 2021
GBP/USD - Today's data summary
% change
+0.19%
Price US dollars
1.4032
Change
+0.0030
As of 01:02 22 Feb 2021
Latest updates
Where now for the pound?

The Andrew Marr Show
Copyright: PA MediaIf the UK and the EU fail to reach a Brexit agreement, there will be a great deal of focus on the value of pound.
Back in June 2016, when the UK voted to leave the European Union, sterling plunged against the dollar and it has been volatile since though it has never managed to surpass $1.50 against the dollar.
Copyright: BBCImage caption: The pound v the dollar over five years Over the past week, the pound has been buffeted by the changing language emerging from the Brexit negotiations and is currently trading around $1.32.
So what does Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab expect to happen to the pound?
"There has already been currency fluctuations. Of course there's a flip side temporarily for that, it is a boost to exporters but obviously it has a challenge domestically," he told The Andrew Marr Show.
When currency markets in Asia open this evening, we'll get our first indication of the scale of those challenges.
Sterling slumps
Copyright: BBCAs you can see from the day's trading graph above the pound is sharply lower, part of a steady decline since 9th March.
Sterling has experienced “one of its steepest declines in memory” writes Neil Wilson chief market analyst at Markets.com.
It hit its weakest level since 1985, excluding the Oct 2016 “flash crash”, he says.
At 1pm UK time a pound was buying $1.19 and €1.08.
“There is a synchronised rush for dollars that has caught most companies, governments and traders on the hop,” Mr Wilson writes. But also: “the euro has developed certain safe haven characteristics. Sterling is, on the other hand, a bit of a proxy for risk.”
Pound recovers ground
Copyright: BBCAfter a fall following the announcement of the emergency rates cut, the pound is back up into positive territory, trading up 0.37% against the dollar.
Meanwhile, the FTSE 100 is up about 1.35% after the Bank of England unexpectedly cut interest rates to shield the economy from the impact of the coronavirus outbreak.
Shares in major UK banks, including Lloyds, RBS and Barclays, rose between 1% and 2% after the central bank said lenders could use one of their capital buffers to maintain lending during the outbreak.
Market update
The pound slumped 0.5% against the euro to €1.136 and was little changed against the dollar at $1.289. The cut in rates makes the UK less attractive as a place to deposit money by foreign investors seeking cash deposits or bonds.
Share markets reacted positively, albeit after a choppy week. The FTSE 100 rose 1.4% in early trading.
Sterling up against the dollar
Copyright: AFPSterling rose 0.76% against the dollar to $1.3147.
Against the Euro, it slid 0.34% to €1.15 and against the Japanese Yen 2.16% to ¥134.48.
Pound climbs as markets and oil prices fall
The pound has climbed 0.64% to $1.3011 against the dollar today and 0.38% to €1.1958 against the euro.
The price of Brent Crude futures has fallen 0.96% to $55.76 a barrel.
Pound boost for late winter holidaymakers

Kevin Peachey
Personal finance reporter
Copyright: Getty ImagesHolidaymakers lucky enough to travel into Europe during the February half-term holiday are getting an extra boost from the value of the pound.
Sterling is close to its highest level against the euro since the immediate aftermath of the EU referendum, with tourist rates also at recent highs.
The pound is fetching more than €1.17 in bureaux de change, but there are warnings that far worse rates are offered in airports.
Meanwhile, the pound is continuing to trade at about €1.20 and $1.30 on the currency markets, where rates are higher than those offered to tourists.
By Kevin Peachey
Personal finance reporter
Sterling’s rise 'extremely premature'
Copyright: PA MediaThe pound is still trading around the €1.20 and $1.30 levels, largely hanging on to the gains it made after Rishi Sunak was announced as the new chancellor. But at least one expert, Prof Costas Milas of the University of Liverpool's Management School, thinks it's an "extremely premature" rise that finds the currency "wrong-footed" by news of Sajid Javid’s resignation.
"Markets are rushing to value positively the prospect of looser fiscal policy which will, presumably, stimulate the economy. Unfortunately, currency celebrations are really premature," he says.
"What financial markets are missing is that [Mr] Javid’s departure has to do with his refusal to allow sound economic policy to be dictated by non-economic experts and the political cycle.
"In other words, future economic policy will most likely be clouded by a mixture of political considerations and an increased risk of 'boom and bust' fiscal expansion."


















