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Sterling received another boost this morning after a leading think-tank announced that Britain will avoid a double-dip recession and its economy will expand at trend growth rates as early as 2012. In the latest forecast from the National Institute for Economic and Social Research (Niesr), it predicts GDP growth of 1.3% this year, 1.7% next year and 2.2% in 2012. The news follows recent strong economic data over the past week where GDP and retail sales figures shocked the market on the upside. The pound has surged to 5 month highs against the dollar and the general consensus is Sterling will continue on a long term rise against the Greenback. Merv “the swerve” King will be speaking today and as usual, I’d expect “doom and gloom” comments from the BoE chief. Most likely on his radar will be the GDP figures from Q2 which showed a rise of 1.1% QoQ (0.6% forecast).
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Just when you thought it was safe to get back into the water after the previous EURUSD short squeeze, we see a 2% move up in the pair and it now trades over 1.25. The combination of the successful Spanish bond auction, speculation of a disappointing US jobs number later today and fears over a US double dip recession all helped the Euro climb against the Dollar. However, the fall-out from the ECB rollover of €442 bn of bank funding has delivered a relative tightening of monetary policy compared to other countries. The subsequent yield advantage of the Euro has been quickly identified by the market and has driven up the price of the Euro against both the Dollar and Sterling. A weaker Euro is needed to drive growth in the Eurozone over the medium term, so the result of the ECB policy of shoring up a trembling Eurozone banking system has been slightly counterproductive. The announced austerity measures across the Eurozone will need to be offset by foreign demand for growth to continue, something that a stronger currency makes less likely.  Whether the ECB sees this as a temporary blip in the downward trajectory of the Euro or we see further Euro strength, it is clear that this issue will be at the front of policy maker minds over the coming months.
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Yesterday was the last day that the £20 note featuring Edward Elgar would be officially classed as legal tender, having been gradually replaced by the new Adam Smith design over the last few years. Unless by some quirk of birth you find yourself in line to the throne, it is unlikely you will ever appear on a bank note. But what exactly does one have to achieve in order to get one’s phizog on the back of Her Majesty? There are no official criteria by which this decision is made. Ultimately, it is the choice of the Governor of the Bank of England based on a shortlist compiled by the bank, very often based on suggestions by the public. The only conditions set out by the Bank of England for potential candidates are that they have shown an “indisputable contribution to their particular field of work and about whom there exists sufficient material on which to base a banknote design.”

Read the rest of the article: http://www.theconfidenceinterval.com/2010/07/01/people-of-note-%e2%80%93-part-one/

Currencies Direct and Lexland abogados working together.

Currencies Direct has secure today a collaboration contract with international law firm Lexland.

Lexland Abogados provides legal services in Spain mainy to non resident clients, offering peace of mind when purchassing property in Spain, assisting existing property owners with further services in the cases of litigation or typical conficts when renting property, taxation in Spain, etc…

Lexland Abogados was founded in 2005 with a commitment from its 4 founding firms to create a company capable of innovation in the delivery of legal services, combining personal attention with high quality and the modern characteristics of a large law firm which currently employs over 90 professionals.

Lexland offers its services to companies, local governments and high net worth individuals across Spain through its network of offices in Madrid, Barcelona, Seville and Marbella. It also has French, United Kingdom, Italian and German international desks to cover demand from its transnational clients in those countries.

For more information, contact: http://www.lexland.es/

Watch Mark O’Sullivan’s interview on the BBC

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00myn8q/Working_Lunch_22_09_2009/

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I moved to Spain with my family over six years ago, having known the country since the days of Franco. My mother is a poet and has lived here for the past forty years and so I have always looked upon Spain as my second country. When, by chance, I was asked to work here I jumped at the opportunity and came to live in Spain permanently.

In fact, moving to Spain has turned out to be an inspired choice, not just for me but also for my family as well. Indeed, as every year passes, we seem to enjoy life here more. In a way, this has been a surprise, possibly because Spain is such a deceptive country. On the surface, to the casual visitor, Spain can appear to be little more than a banality of fine beaches and great bars - with a dose of Flamenco and guaranteed sun mixed in. However, this is a false impression.

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