Will sterling win the 'ugly competition' in currency markets?

Andrew Cole, investment director at Barings, has warned sterling "could get ugly" during the next six months, ahead of the 2015 general election, but said it remains the best of a bad bunch for now.

Cole (pictured), who manages the £879m Baring Multi-Asset fund, said his preference is still to invest in sterling as it is the lesser of two evils compared to other currencies. "We have 83% in sterling, but currency is an ugly competition and, by default, sterling has been less bad than its competitors.  "Thinking forward to the general election, sterling might go from being least ugly to considerably more so, and we are mindful of that. It is not happening yet but, from the second half of 2014 onwards, the pound could come under scrutiny, especially as the polls indicate we could ge...