Sterling near two-week low

Sterling hovered near a two-week low against the dollar on Friday, dented by a sharp fall in UK industrial output, while concerns about global growth dampened demand for perceived riskier currencies and assets. Data showed UK industrial output contracted by 1.7 percent in April due to the extra public holiday for the Royal Wedding and supply chain disruptions caused by the Japanese earthquake, far below the 0.1 percent increase economists had predicted.
This pushed sterling to a two-week low against the dollar of $1.6215 and a session low versus the euro, though it quickly recovered as traders said there had been talk of a much worse number prior to the release. "Sterling is vulnerable in a risk-off environment, especially against the dollar, yen and Swiss franc," said Audrey Childe-Freeman, currency strategist at J.P. Morgan Private Bank.
The pound was last down 0.7 percent against the dollar at $1.6248, hovering around its 100-day moving average which comes in at $1.6243. A decisive move below this level could pave the way for a move towards the May low of $1.6055. Sterling hit a 12-week low against the yen around 129.93 yen. Analysts said a break below 130 yen could spark further losses. The pound was also down 0.6 percent against the Swiss franc. The euro was down 0.3 percent at 88.35 pence, well below a high of 89.225 pence hit immediately after the UK data which was not far from the five-week high of 89.76 struck earlier in the week.