The Pound was trading around the 1.27 level against the Euro after it found support from the release of the latest house price data. According to a report compiled by Halifax, house prices in the UK increased by 0.6% in September, beating forecasts for an upturn of 0.2%. In the three months to September, prices increased 9.6% on an annual basis. The data reduces some of the concerns that the UK housing sector is slowing down. In general the longer term trend remains down, but there is possibility of support holding soon.

US Dollar

The US Dollar advanced against all of its major peers as economists settled in to wait for the release of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting minutes. The ‘Greenback’ was at a one-month high against the Euro after the International Monetary Fund cut its global growth forecast. The currency is also finding support from safe-haven demand as concerns over the Ebola outbreak begin to affect the markets.

The Euro

The Euro remains weaker against its rivals as Tuesday’s German data further increased fears that the Eurozone could slide back into recession. Also weighing on the single currency were market jitters caused by news that Ebola has reached the continent after a Spanish nurse became the first person outside of West Africa to become infected with the virus.

Australian Dollar

The ‘Aussie’ went back into retreat mode against the US Dollar and other peers after the markets were spooked by concerns over Ebola and as the International Monetary Fund cut its forecast for global growth this year. Sentiment was hit after the IMF downgraded its forecast for the remainder of this year and 2015.

New Zealand Dollar

The New Zealand Dollar followed the ‘Aussie’ lower on the back of the IMF global growth report. Market sentiment weakened after the IMF downgraded its global growth forecast for both this year and next due to stagnation in Europe and a weaker-than-forecast recovery in Japan.

Canadian Dollar

The ‘Loonie’ softened against its US relation on the back of the IMF report and increased demand for safe haven assets as concerns over the conflicts in both the Middle East and Ukraine and the Ebola virus continued to cause jitters in the markets.

South African Rand

The Rand softened against a number of currency counterparts as the positivity from the hiring of Lesetja Kganyago waned. Investors are expecting that the evening’s US Federal Reserve minutes will show that the world’s largest economy is getting closer to raising interest rates. Markets are pricing in higher interest rates in the world’s biggest economy, which would whittle down investors’ appetite for high-yielding emerging-market assets like the Rand.

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