Pound sterling falls below $1.25 after poor UK services figures
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Version 0 of 1. The pound has fallen below $1.25 after data showed that growth in the UK's services firms fell for the first time since September last month -- a sign that the UK's dominant economic sector may be moderating. The pound was recently trading at $1.2497, around 0.2 per cent lower on the day. The latest Markit/CIPS Purchasing Managers' Index survey gave a reading of 54.5 last month. That's down from 56.2 previously and lower than the 55.8 the City had expected. The pound already suffered steep losses on Thursday after the Bank of England raised its growth forecast but pointed to interest rates staying on hold long into next year. Sterling has been seesawing in recent weeks. It remains around 15 per cent lower since last year’s Brexit vote but it hit a seven-week high early on Thursday with traders citing increased transparency on the possible course of the UK’s separation from the EU. |