Daily currency report

The yen stayed on the back foot against the dollar for the third day running as the carry trades continued to undermine the yen's value. This sent the yen to a 15-year low versus sterling.

GBP
The sterling weakened against the dollar and the euro as a mixed set of data did little to change expectations for further Bank of England interest hikes this year. British retail figures rose 0.4 per cent in May recovering from April's fall. But the retail deflator slowed from April's eight-year high, showing signs that price pressures are easing.

USD
The dollar was stronger across the board as evidence of persistent inflationary pressures continues to mount up. The news helped the greenback push on to a four-and-a-half-year high against the yen. Producer prices increased 0.9 per cent in the month of May while core prices increased 0.2 per cent.

EUR
Given the weakness of the recent economic data, only hawkish comments from Central Bank officials are offering the currency any degree of support. Both eurozone consumer prices and labour costs fell short of expectations suggesting that inflationary pressures could slowly be receding. Nevertheless, controlling inflation remains a central bank priority.

JPY
The yen hit new four-and-a-half-year lows against the US dollar as the release of the US core produce prices increased year on year pushing the US treasury yields higher. The Bank of Japan kept interest rates unchanged at 0.50 per cent in a unanimous decision.