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Purse strings tighter

British spend less
August 7, 2017

Data from credit card firm Visa show that for a third consecutive month UK consumer spending shrank in July.  People spent 0.8 per cent less than they did this time last year, the biggest hit being transport and communication (down 6.1 per cent) and clothing (down 5.2 per cent).  It’s the first time we’ve seen a quarterly fall since February 2013.

They’re still eye-wateringly expensive but London rents fell again in July, the fourth month in a row that they have done so.  Averaging £1564 per month, they’ve dropped 0.6 per cent over the year, the first time they have done so since 2009.

EURO/US DOLLAR

Reprieve for the US dollar on Friday so that we have a strong weekly shooting star candle against the euro and a currency that is still overbought.  Therefore the next fortnight or so is likely to be one of correction and consolidation.  We shall be looking for opportunities to re-buy the euro against the US dollar as the longer term trend is intact.

 

SHORT TERM TRADER:  Long at 1.1740; stop below 1.1700.  Target 1.2150.

 

POSITION TAKER:  Square.