The pound edged up against the dollar today, with the GBP/USD cross climbing back above $1.24. There is very little to report as we have had been no major data releases from the UK or U.S today, although Fed Chair Janet Yellen is due to speak at the University of Michigan this evening and her comments could cause some volatility for dollar pairs. As you can see from the graph below the pound/dollar exchange rate has risen around half a cent over the course of today's session, despite some evidence UK consumers are starting to reduce their spending.
According to Visa, monthly spending dropped in March, and they also reported the lowest quarterly rate for nearly four years.
GBP/USD graph
Key data tomorrow.
There are a number of key eco-stats being released from the UK tomorrow (Tuesday) that could have an impact on the value of the pound.
The main one being the latest CPI (Consumer Price Index) reading, which is published by the Office for National Statistics. The reading is considered the UK most important inflation data, as it's used by the Bank of England's inflation target.
In recent months there have been calls for the Bank of England to raise interest rates to combat the rising inflation figure. Last month inflation rose above the central bank's target of 2%, hitting 2.3%.
However, tomorrow's reading is expected to show that inflation has dropped back to 2.2%, which if confirmed could see the pound fall across the board as it would reduce the charges of a rate hike in the near future.
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