Sterling rose against the euro but slipped against the dollar on Monday as Greek politicians struggled to find a consensus on bailout terms, heightening anxiety over the debt crisis in Europe and lending support to the US currency. A recent run of positive UK economic data gave some support to sterling, though dealers said it was unlikely to dissuade the Bank of England from announcing an increase on Thursday in the asset purchase programme that has been weighing on the pound.
In the meantime, events in the euro zone continue to drive currency movements. The Greek government and party leaders are yet to agree on what conditions they are prepared to accept in exchange for a second bailout. The euro was down around 0.4 percent on the day at 82.80 pence. Traders said support was at this year's low of 82.22 hit in January and a break through there would take the pound to its strongest since September 2010.
Sterling was down around 0.2 percent versus the dollar at $1.5783, below a 10-week high of $1.5884 hit last week. Traders reported stop-loss sell orders around $1.5715, while bids were also highlighted around $1.5710/00. The pound has benefited against the dollar since the middle of January from a rally in equities which has boosted riskier currencies, together with data showing the UK economy may be turning the corner.
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