Pound at 7-Week Low

The pound fell to a near-seven week low as Britain’s powerhouse service sector suffered a slowdown amid cautious consumer spending and a steep rise in costs linked to sterling’s collapse, Yahoo reported. The closely watched PMI survey put together by Markit fell to 53.3 in February, down from 54.5 in January, and below economists’ forecasts of 54.1. A reading above 50 indicates growth. It marked the slowest rate of expansion since September last year and caught currency markets by surprise. The pound fell to a near-seven week low against the US dollar to trade at $1.222, and dropped 0.6% versus the euro to a near-one month low of €1.160.