The pound to euro history reveals that exchange rates in 2022 were not as low as they were during 2008 or since the Brexit referendum. Since the United Kingdom (UK) held a referendum on its European Union membership in June 2016, the British pound (GBP) weakened against the euro. From a high of 1.43 at the end of Nov 2015, the GBP to EUR exchange rate has remained below 1.2 since July 2016, sitting at 1.11 as of October 2020. By March 25, 2025, values had reached 1.20 euros per pound. The euro to pound exchange rate can be found on a different page.Hitting UK citizens' pockets It is not just European holiday makers that are hit when the British pound to Euro exchange rate falls. The average UK consumer also feels the pinch as inflation rates often rise to cover the shortfall of the pound. When the inflation rate rises, the price of imported goods goes up and the consumer ends up paying more. GBP to U.S. dollarSince 2016's referendum, the British pound (GBP) fell across the exchange. The GBP's fall against the Euro was also reflected against the U.S. dollar where the exchange rate in May 2016 (pre-referendum) of 1.46 dollars to the pound has fallen significantly.

This statistic shows the exchange rate of Pound Sterling (GBP) against the Euro (EUR) between June 20th and July 25th, 2016. The data displays a stable rate of exchange until the day after the UK’s EU Referendum, referred to as Brexit (June 23rd), at which point the value of the pound against the euro began to drop.

The GBPUSD increased 0.0035 or 0.27% to 1.2924 on Thursday March 27 from 1.2889 in the previous trading session. British Pound - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on March of 2025.

The USD to GBP exchange rate history reveals a notably strong dollar against pound in 2022, with values being higher than during COVID-19 or Brexit. In January 2021, for example, one U.S. dollar could buy less than 0.80 British pounds. This had changed to a value of 0.77 British pounds by March 25, 2025. Before that time, the exchange rate grew especially during the summer of 2022 - in the wake of war in Ukraine as well as uncertainty surrounding the UK government's inflation response - as exchange rates reached the highest value since 2012.

During 2022, the GBP/USD exchange rate reached its lowest value ever recorded, after the UK government announced its initial plans to combat inflation. Prices did increase again after these plans were turned back shortly after. As of March 25, 2025, one pound was valued at roughly 1.29 U.S. dollars.What affects an exchange rateThere are several factors that can affect an exchange rate. In terms of the current situation, the political and economic standings surrounding Brexit is probably the largest driver in the current form of the British pound. Other factors include inflation and interest rates, public debts, deficits as well as the country's export prices to import prices ratio.British pound to EuroSince the United Kingdom (UK) held a referendum on its European Union membership in June 2016, the British pound's (GBP) standing against the Euro has also been affected. During the first half of 2020, the British pound against the Euro weakened overall.

The average exchange rate of the euro to the pound nearly reached 0.9 GBP over the course of 2022, a figure lower than in previous years. This according to a comparison between average monthly and daily exchange rates. Figures changed especially in the second half of 2022, after the British government first announced its inflation plans. By March 25, 2025, however, one euro was valued at 0.84 British pounds. The pound to euro exchange rate can be found on a different page.EstablishmentThe euro, which was established in 1992, introduced in non-physical form in 1999 and finally rolled out in 2002, is used by 19 of the 27 member states of the European Union. This group of 19 countries is otherwise known as the eurozone or euro area. By 2018, the total value of euro currency in circulation was almost 1.2 trillion euros, or over 3.4 thousand euros per capita.Euro to GBPBetween 2000 and 2009, the average annual exchange rate of the euro to the British pound sterling noted a steep increase. In 2009, the euro to British pound sterling annual average exchange rate was equal to 0.89, which meant that one euro could buy 0.89 British pounds. By 2016, this value had decreased to a value of 0.82, which again meant that one euro could buy 0.88 British pounds. The Brexit referendum is the likely reason for the noted increase in value of euro to British pound sterling from 2017 onwards. The overall strengthening of the euro against the British pound following the referendum result, in June 2016, can be seen in the monthly exchange rate.

Graph and download economic data for U.S. Dollars to U.K. Pound Sterling Spot Exchange Rate (EXUSUK) from Jan 1971 to Feb 2025 about United Kingdom, exchange rate, currency, rate, and USA.

As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the value of goods exported to the European Union from the United Kingdom was over 42.1 billion British pounds, compared with around 76.7 billion pounds of goods imported, resulting in a negative goods trade balance with the EU of around approximately 34.6 billion pounds.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the United Kingdom was worth 3380.85 billion US dollars in 2023, according to official data from the World Bank. The GDP value of the United Kingdom represents 3.21 percent of the world economy. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United Kingdom GDP - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, the value of exports from the United Kingdom amounted to approximately 206.3 billion British pounds, while imports to the country amounted to around 217.8 billion pounds, resulting in a trade deficit of around 11.5 billion pounds in this quarter. During this time period, the value of UK exports was highest in the fourth quarter of 2022, with the value of imports peaking in the third quarter of 2022. The UK's main trade partners Despite the UK leaving the EU in 2020 following the Brexit referendum of 2016, Europe remains the main destination for UK exports, with almost half of UK exports heading there in 2023. During the same year, just over 60 percent of imports came from European countries, compared with around 17.9 percent from countries in Asia, and 11.8 percent from the Americas. In terms of individual countries, the United States was the UK's leading export partner for both goods and services from the UK, while Germany was the main source of UK goods imports, and the U.S. for service imports. It is as yet unclear how the return of Donald Trump to the White House will impact UK/US trade relations, should the President follow through with threats made on the campaign trail to increase trade tariffs. Brexit rethink under Starmer? Although generally more pro-European than the previous government, the new Labour government, led by Keir Starmer, does not plan to rejoin the European Union, or the Single Market. Public opinion, while gradually turning against Brexit recently, has not coalesced around a particular trading relationship. In late 2023, a survey indicated that while 31 percent of British adults wanted to rejoin the EU, a further 30 percent wanted to simply improve relations with the EU, instead of rejoining. Just 11 percent of respondents wanted to join the single market but not the EU, while 10 percent were happy with the relationship as it was. At the start of 2025, after several months in office, the new government has not signalled any major change in direction regarding on this, but has broadly signalled it wants a better relationship with the EU.

The UK inflation rate was three percent in January 2025, up from 2.5 percent in the previous month, and the fastest rate of inflation since March 2024. Between September 2022 and March 2023, the UK experienced seven months of double-digit inflation, which peaked at 11.1 percent in October 2022. Due to this long period of high inflation, UK consumer prices have increased by over 20 percent in the last three years. As of the most recent month, prices were rising fastest in the communications sector, at 6.1 percent, but were falling in both the furniture and transport sectors, at -0.3 percent and -0.6 percent respectively.
The Cost of Living Crisis High inflation is one of the main factors behind the ongoing Cost of Living Crisis in the UK, which, despite subsiding somewhat in 2024, is still impacting households going into 2025. In December 2024, for example, 56 percent of UK households reported their cost of living was increasing compared with the previous month, up from 45 percent in July, but far lower than at the height of the crisis in 2022. After global energy prices spiraled that year, the UK's energy price cap increased substantially. The cap, which limits what suppliers can charge consumers, reached 3,549 British pounds per year in October 2022, compared with 1,277 pounds a year earlier. Along with soaring food costs, high-energy bills have hit UK households hard, especially lower income ones that spend more of their earnings on housing costs. As a result of these factors, UK households experienced their biggest fall in living standards in decades in 2022/23. Global inflation crisis causes rapid surge in prices The UK's high inflation, and cost of living crisis in 2022 had its origins in the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the initial waves of the virus, global supply chains struggled to meet the renewed demand for goods and services. Food and energy prices, which were already high, increased further in 2022. Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 brought an end to the era of cheap gas flowing to European markets from Russia. The war also disrupted global food markets, as both Russia and Ukraine are major exporters of cereal crops. As a result of these factors, inflation surged across Europe and in other parts of the world, but typically declined in 2023, and approached more usual levels by 2024.

The value of goods exported from the United Kingdom was over 86.4 billion British pounds in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with 141.7 billion pounds worth of goods imported, resulting in a goods trade deficit of around 55.4 billion pounds.

This statistics displays the value of UK exports of goods and services to the European Union annually from 1999 to 2023. Over the time period under consideration, UK exports of goods and services to EU members states increased overall, despite some fluctuations. In 2023, UK exported approximately 357 billion British pounds worth of goods and services to the European Union.

The Euro to Australian exchange rate history reveals a peak in March 2020, before declining well until mid 2022. Exchange rates fluctuate against each other constantly. As of March 21, 2025, the exchange rate was avalued at 1.72 Australian dollars per euro. The rate in which one currency performs against another depends on the demand that it generates at any given time. Exchange rates are affected by several factors including international trade, tourism and geopolitical tensions.Euro gains strength against the Brexit PoundOne good example of geopolitical risks having a negative effect on the strength of a currency is to look at the British Pound post Brexit referendum. The average annual exchange rate of the Euro to GBP increased significantly between 2015 and 2018.The Euro vs the worldSince 2016, the euro has performed well against several other currencies. The Euro to U.S dollar had seen its annual average exchange rate increase by .07 between 2016 and 2018, after slightly decreasing in 2019. Against the Indian Rupee, the Euro had performed even better, with the average annual exchange rate equaling 78.84 in 2019.

The gross domestic product of the United Kingdom was around 2.56 trillion British pounds, an increase when compared to the previous year, when UK GDP amounted to about 2.54 trillion pounds. The significant drop in GDP visible in 2020 was due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the smaller declines in 2008 and 2009 because of the global financial crisis of the late 2000s. Low growth problem in the UK Despite growing by 0.9 percent in 2024, and 0.4 percent in 2023 the UK economy is not that much larger than it was before the COVID-19 pandemic. Since recovering from a huge fall in GDP in the second quarter of 2020, the UK economy has alternated between periods of contraction and low growth, with the UK even in a recession at the end of 2023. While economic growth picked up somewhat in 2024, GDP per capita is lower than it was in 2022, following two years of negative growth. How big is the UK economy in relation to the rest of the world? As of 2024, the UK had the sixth-largest economy in the world, behind the United States, China, Japan, Germany, and India. Among European nations, this meant that the UK currently has the second-largest economy in Europe, although the economy of France, Europe's third-largest economy, is of a similar size. The UK's global economic ranking will likely fall in the coming years, however, with the UK's share of global GDP expected to fall from 2.16 percent in 2025 to 2.02 percent by 2029.  

Cars were the most valuable type of commodity exported from the United Kingdom in 2024, with exports of this commodity valued at approximately 32.9 billion British pounds. Mechanical power generators were the second-most valuable commodity in 2024, with an export value of around 32.7 billion pounds in this year. By comparison, the most valuable import commodity was also cars, amounting to over 38.4 billion British pounds. The next most valuable import commodity was medicinal and pharmaceutical products at over 27.2 million pounds in this year. UK main trading partners Although the share of both imports and exports from the European Union has been declining recently, the single market is still by far the UK's main trading partner. In terms of individual countries, the United States was the main export partner in 2024 at 16.1 percent of all exports, while Germany was the UK's main import partner with 12.5 percent of imports coming from there in 2024. A main argument of the Leave vote, was that the UK should seek to improve up its trade with the rest of the world, outside of Europe. The success of this 'Global Britain' strategy, depends on the UK significantly scaling up its trade with other continents, with countries outside of Europe still responsible for far less trade than European ones. Brexit and EU trade At the start of 2021, the United Kingdom exited both the European Single Market and the European Customs Union, with the UK's trading relationship with the EU now determined by a new Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA). Although the TCA continued tariff and quota-free goods trade between the EU and UK, a number of customs checks came into force, increasing trade friction between the two parties. The status of Northern Ireland in the initial agreement was also different from the rest of the UK. Goods entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain were initially subject to customs checks, to prevent customs checks occurring at the border with the Republic of Ireland. In February 2023, it was announced that under a new EU-UK agreement called the Windsor Framework, some goods entering Northern Ireland from Britain will be subject to fewer checks.

The value of service exports from the United Kingdom amounted to almost 120 billion British pounds in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with 76 billion pounds worth of services imported, giving the UK a service trade surplus of around 43.8 billion pounds.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, the United Kingdom had a trade deficit of 11.5 billion British pounds, due to a 55.4 billion pound deficit in goods trade offset by a 43.8 billion pound trade surplus in services.

In 2023, demand for UK-built cars grew by 16.8 percent year-on-year to some 905,100 units. The United Kingdom exports nearly eight out of 10 cars assembled in UK plants. Vulnerability to trade disruptions Sales and exports of UK-manufactured vehicles began to fall in 2016. Slumping investments amid Brexit fears, as well as higher costs of production, are likely to have contributed to a slowdown in demand. Since the UK’s referendum on membership of the European Union, the British pound has fallen in value. This may have been expected to be good news for exporters, who garner more interest with relatively cheaper products. However, the weak pound is unfavorable for vehicle manufacturers due to their international supply chains. The European Union is the UK auto industry's leading trade partner, accounting for most of its car imports. EU markets also account for around six in 10 UK car exports. Inflation impacts new and used car sales The price inflation recorded in the United Kingdom impacted all product types, passenger cars included. New car purchases were the most affected by the soaring prices: Their consumer price index was at its highest in the past fifteen years in 2023. In contrast, the consumer price index for used car purchases decreased in 2023, down from its record-breaking 2022 value.

Public sector net debt amounted to 88.9 percent of gross domestic product in the United Kingdom during the 2023/24 financial year, rising to 97.8 percent when the Bank of England is included. This is the highest debt incurred by the government since the early 1960s. After peaking at 251.7 percent shortly after the end of the Second World War, government debt in the UK gradually fell, before a sharp increase in the late 2000s at the time of the global financial crisis. Debt not expected to start falling until 2029/30 In 2022/23, the UK's government expenditure was approximately 1.15 trillion pounds, around 45.3 percent of GDP. This spending was financed by 1.02 trillion pounds of revenue raised, and 1.28 billion pounds of borrowing. Although the UK government can still borrow money in the future, it also needs to abide by certain fiscal rules, one of which is that debt should be falling within a five-year timeframe. Recent forecasts suggest that while this is expected to be the case, it is based on falling government deficits in the next five years. Next government faces hard choices Whoever wins the UK's 2024 general election will face tough economic choices in the coming years. Hitting fiscal targets, such as reducing the national debt, will require a careful balancing of the books, and possibly the need for either spending cuts or tax rises. The two major parties, Labour and the Conservatives, have both ruled out raising the main government tax sources, Income Tax, National Insurance, and VAT, and have so far remained silent on possible spending cuts. With limits on borrowing, and no tax rises or spending cuts, maintaining, let alone improving public services, will prove a challenging prospect for the next government.