Pound Falls Amid Risk Aversion

The British pound weakened against the other major currencies in the early European session on Monday amid risk aversion, as oil prices gave up early gains.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is currently down 0.49 percent or 28.72 points at 5,871, France's CAC 40 index is down 0.49 percent or 21.36 points at 4,315 and Germany's DAX is down 0.36 percent or 35.27 points at 9,729.

Crude oil for March delivery are currently down $1.24 to $30.95 a barrel.

Harsh winter weather on the U.S. East coast triggered the demand of U.S. crude oil in Asian deals.

In the Asian session today, the pound held steady against its major rivals.

In the early European trading, the pound fell to 1.4234 against the U.S. dollar and 168.31 against the yen, from early highs of 1.4309 and 170.00, respectively. If the pound extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 1.40 against the greenback and 167.00 against the yen.

Against the euro and the Swiss franc, the pound dropped to 0.7607 and 1.4419 from early highs of 0.7553 and 1.4517, respectively. The pound may test support near 0.77 against the euro and 1.41 against the franc.

Looking ahead, at 1:00 pm ET, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi is scheduled to speak at the Deutsche Borse New Year's reception, in Frankfurt.

The New Zealand markets are closed in observance of Wellington Anniversary day holiday.