British Pound Touches 5-month High - 20.4.2012

The pound reached the highest level since November 2011 – 1.6117 at the beginning of the European session today, accelerating gains of the previous 4 days. The Office for National Statistics reported today that the volume of retail sales in March 2012 increased by 3.3% from March 2011. In February the indicator increased by 1% in annual figures, so that economists predicted on average a less considerable gain for March. Pair GBP/USD therefore rose by approximately 1.8% this week from Monday’s low 1.5818.