GBP traded mixed against other major currencies in the European session on Friday, as risk currencies, including sterling, came under pressure amid heightened worries about the pace of the global economic recovery amid surging coronavirus infections caused by the highly contagious delta variant.

The pound fell against USD, CHF, EUR and JPY, but rose against NZD, CAD and AUD.

Concerns that the world’s major central banks will start scaling back their stimulus just as growth decelerates also undermined global risk sentiment.

In addition, the UK’s July retail sales report disappointed market participants with a sudden m-o-m drop. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that Briain’s retail sales volumes dropped by 2.5 percent m-o-m in July, following a downwardly revised 0.2 percent m-o-m gain in the previous month. This was the largest monthly drop in retail sales since January. Economists had forecast a 0.4 percent m-o-m rise.