Overview:

The British Pound against the USD Dollar is one of the oldest and most established currency pairs in the forex markets, it’s history can be dated back to the mid-19th century due to the “Cable” that was laid across the Atlantic Ocean floor which facilitated both GBP and USD rates between London and New York. This currency pair tells traders how many US Dollars are needed to buy a British Pound, again a very liquid markets that offers traders attractive potential returns in the short and long term.

Key Facts:

GBP

• The Central Bank of UK is Bank of England (BoE).
• Pound Sterling is one of the oldest modern currencies in the world. During the American war of independence and Napoleonic wars Bank of England notes were used as the currency of choice and its value floated relative to gold.
• The UK economy is heavily dependent on the financial services and key data for GBP are Services PMI, CPI and employment statistics.
• GBP also referred to as just sterling or the pound is fourth in terms of global reserves held worldwide.

USD

• The Central Bank of the United States is the Federal Reserve (sometimes referred to as the Fed).
• USD is the main global reserve currency and the United States of America (U.S.A) is the largest economy in the world.
• The (US Dollar) USD is used to price most global commodities (including Oil and Gold).
• The US has a well developed economy with high productivity levels and is fuelled by huge natural resources.
• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) states that the US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is $15 trillion and makes-up c. 23% of global GDP to exchange rates.