GBP/NZD settles above 7-week low, posts weekly loss

The GBP/NZD currency pair settled above Friday’s low of 2.2184, its weakest level since February 26th, after the latest inflation data prints out of the United Kingdom and New Zealand.

The Pound faced downward pressure this week following a softer-than-anticipated UK inflation reading.

Annual inflation rate in the UK has slowed to 2.6% in March from 2.8% in February, against market consensus and the BoE’s forecasts of 2.7%.

UK’s annual core CPI inflation, which excludes volatile categories such as food and energy, slowed to 3.4% in March, or the lowest rate since December, from 3.5%.

Easing inflationary pressure has added to expectations that the BoE might be inclined to adopt a more accommodative monetary policy stance, potentially including interest rate cuts in the future.

At the same time, annual CPI inflation in New Zealand has picked up to 2.5% in the first quarter of this year from 2.2% in Q4 2024. It has been the highest inflation rate since Q2 2024. The largest upward pressure came from rent, which rose 3.7% YoY.

The GBP/NZD currency pair settled 0.75% higher at 2.2362 on Friday.

The minor Forex pair lost 0.35% for the week.