Pound euro exchange rate suffers from ‘dismal’ day as GBP falls – travel money latest

Travel money: Post Office introduce multi-currency pre-paid card

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The pound to euro exchange rate has broken “below the €1.16 mark” and the currency pairing struggles this week, said experts. The poor performance of GBP comes amid fears around the Covid Astrazeneca vaccine. Some have speculated sterling’s fall is due to a lack of confidence in the Oxford jab after blood clot concerns.

Looking ahead at today, there is little new data coming out.

However, experts say this could give the pound some “breathing space.”

The pound is trading at 1.1592 against the euro, according to Bloomberg at the time of writing.

Michael Brown, currency expert at international payments and foreign exchange firm Caxton FX, spoke to Express.co.uk regarding the latest exchange rate figures.

“Sterling had another rather dismal day against the common currency yesterday, breaking below the €1.16 mark,” said Brown.

“It fell back towards the bottom of the broad trading range that has dominated since March.

“Some have speculated that the move may have been due to the UK regulator’s decision to restrict usage of the AstraZeneca vaccine, though this seems a little far-fetched.

“Today’s calendar is a little barren, perhaps giving the quid the breathing space required to stage something of a recovery.”

So what does this mean for your holidays and travel money?

Post Office Travel is currently offering a rate of €1.1191 over £400, €1.1353 for over £500, or €1.1411 for over £1,000.

With the exchange rate slipping and foreign holidays still at least over a month away, it is unlikely most Britons will be buying holiday money quite yet.

In fact, British jet-setters are urged to wait until while there’s still uncertainty regarding foreign travel this summer.

Travel abroad is currently illegal with sizeable fines in place for those who jet off without “reasonable excuse.”

However, in more promising news, Boris Johnson has vowed he has “not given up” on his proposed May 17 restart date for international travel

Experts advise waiting until any volatility simmers down.

James Lynn, co-CEO and co-founder of travel card Currensea, said: “It may be tempting to take out foreign currency in anticipation of a future holiday, while the exchange rate is favourable.

“However, I would advise against this. Market movements are often more marginal in reality than they appear.

“Especially during this volatile time, it’s safer to keep hold of your money in your UK bank account than purchasing or exchanging for holiday money.

“Once we are allowed to travel again, this will signify the end of the COVID bump and I anticipate this will mean the Pound has improved even more significantly.

“On top of this, when it comes to your consumer rights, using a travel card will always be a safer and cheaper option than using cash.”

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