Investing.com – The euro extended early gains against the pound on Monday, trading within striking distance of a six-month high after a report showed that manufacturing activity in the euro zone in April showed the second-strongest pace of expansion since August 2000.
EUR/GBP hit 0.8906 during European morning trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.8895, gaining 0.40%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.8807, the low of April 26 and resistance at 0.8936, Friday’s high and a six-month high.
The final Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 58 in April from 57.5 in March, indicating that factory output rose at a faster rate than in the previous month.
The final PMI was higher than the preliminary estimate of 57.7 released last month. A reading above 50 indicates that activity increased, while a reading below 50 indicates that it decreased.
However, the pickup in growth was largely driven by German and French factories, while activity in the Italian and Spanish manufacturing sectors grew at a slower pace.
The manufacturing PMI for Germany rose to 62.0 from 60.9 in March, a stronger-than- expected result, while the manufacturing PMI for Italy fell to 55.5 from 56.2 and the manufacturing PMI for Spain fell to 50.6 from 51.6.
The euro was also higher against the U.S. dollar, with EUR/USD rising 0.20% to hit 1.4836.
Also Monday, London-based property researcher Hometrack said U.K. house prices stopped falling in April for the first time in 10 months as demand for homes picked up.
EUR/GBP hit 0.8906 during European morning trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.8895, gaining 0.40%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.8807, the low of April 26 and resistance at 0.8936, Friday’s high and a six-month high.
The final Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 58 in April from 57.5 in March, indicating that factory output rose at a faster rate than in the previous month.
The final PMI was higher than the preliminary estimate of 57.7 released last month. A reading above 50 indicates that activity increased, while a reading below 50 indicates that it decreased.
However, the pickup in growth was largely driven by German and French factories, while activity in the Italian and Spanish manufacturing sectors grew at a slower pace.
The manufacturing PMI for Germany rose to 62.0 from 60.9 in March, a stronger-than- expected result, while the manufacturing PMI for Italy fell to 55.5 from 56.2 and the manufacturing PMI for Spain fell to 50.6 from 51.6.
The euro was also higher against the U.S. dollar, with EUR/USD rising 0.20% to hit 1.4836.
Also Monday, London-based property researcher Hometrack said U.K. house prices stopped falling in April for the first time in 10 months as demand for homes picked up.