Sterling’s year got off to less of a bang than that which attended 2009’s new-year party. Instead of picking up ten cents in the first ten days, as it did a year earlier, it was not until almost two weeks into January that the pound began to build up steam. After a one and a half cent rally the day before new year's eve...
It is unlikely that 2009 will go down in the records as an annus mirabilis for sterling but things could have been a lot worse. With the sterling/euro exchange rate at €1.02 on new year’s eve a year ago it looked very much as though they were about to get very nasty indeed. The pound had lost ten cents a month for three months...
Sterling spent November still mired in a range not altogether different from the one that held it in October. The four cents between €1.09 and €1.13 accounted for almost every minute of the pound’s month and €1.09 was never seriously threatened.
As predicted, the pound has strengthened over the last few weeks – it is now more than 10 percent higher than it was at the start of the year. Combined with low interest rates and the slower property market here in France, that means it now is a really good time to buy in France!