With UK house prices already suffering the brunt of a weak economy, further data suggests they have fallen further. Prices across England and Wales fell 1.7%, suggesting now is the time to sit on your property, leaking pipes and all.

Pound Sterling – UK Markets

Similar to the Euro, the Pound suffered losses against the Dollar last week but managed to stay just above support levels of between 1.5510 and 1.5550.

Further news on house prices suggested that home sellers cut an average of 17,000 Pounds off their asking prices during August, which wiped out the gains seen in the earlier part of the year. House prices dropped 4.1% in the nation’s capital, the biggest in two years.

The GBP/EUR rate as of GMT 1025 was 1.21730, whilst the GBP/USD rate was 1.5580.

US Dollar – US Markets

Continuing along the line of housing, evidence in the US suggests that the market is slowing on the back of today’s housing market index predictions.

Even with all the troubles in the Eurozone, China continues to favour the single currency compared with the Dollar, underlining the troubles that are facing the US economy. With constant fears over the pace at which the economy is beginning to slow, European bonds are becoming more favourable to many overseas investors.

Euro – European Markets

Towards the back end of last week Germany, France and Spain posted much better than expected second quarter GDP figures. However, this wasn’t enough to prevent the Euro sliding back against both the US Dollar and Sterling. The single currency hit 9 week lows against the Dollar and with CPI for July expected to come in at -0.4% and sovereign debt problems very much at the forefront of everyone’s concerns, we could yet see further falls.

The EUR/USD rate as of GMT 1025 was 1.27970.

Other Currencies – Highlights

The Japanese Yen is at the forefront of world economic movements as the currency outlines its position as the best performer among the major currencies this year.  Good news at first glance; however, with Japans economy clearly driven by exports, mainly in the technology sector, worries are growing over how the slowing US and Chinese economies will affect this. A combination of increasing costs and poor market data do not spell good times ahead for the Japanese.

The Yen reached a five year high against the Dollar on August 11th, touching 84.73 to the Dollar.

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