Forex Weekly Round Up 2 February 2015 – 6 February 2015

American consumers increased their purchasing in Q4 2014. While the economy grew at a 2.6 percent annualised rate, the gain fell short of forecasts and well below Q3.

The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index fell to a one-year low of 53.5 from 55.1 in December 2014.

The new Greek Finance Minister, Yanis Varoufakis, met with around 100 banks, elaborating that Greece will be able to facilitate its debt. This happened despite the European Central Bank piling on pressure and restricting Greek access to direct liquidity.

Down under, the Reserve Bank of Australia announced its interest rate levels. The rate was sitting at 2.5%, however, we saw it fall to 2.25% making the currency weaker.

Here in the UK, growth across British construction companies rebounded in January after a slow end to 2014. The construction purchasing managers’ index rose to 59.1 from a 17-month low in December 2014 of 57.6.

Growth across housing, commercial and civil engineering meant there was increased optimism in the market. It came as no great surprise that the Bank of England held interest rates at 0.5% for the 71st month in a row.