Currency markets begin the week with a fairly clear pecking order. The US dollar has the upper hand, having strengthened by more than 1.5% against both sterling and the euro over the past week. The pound and euro, meanwhile, are almost exactly where they started against one another last week and, indeed, last month.

That follows a crowded few days for central banks. The dollar’s strength is based on the fact that the Federal Reserve raised interest rates for the first time in three years, while the Bank of England held its ground despite three policymakers voting for an increase. Japan also raised rates on Friday. The European Central Bank had already moved earlier in September. For now, those decisions have left the dollar looking the strongest of our three currencies, by some distance.

Attention now turns from what central banks have done to how their economies are coping with it. UK public finances arrive tomorrow in the shape of Net Public Borrowing – of vital interest with the Budget fast approaching. Then Wednesday brings flash Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) surveys from the UK, eurozone and United States. With energy prices still high and borrowing costs rising, those numbers should offer an early indication of whether businesses are beginning to feel the squeeze.

With oil still way above $100 (for Brent Crude) the UK and Europe are in equal trouble, which is probably why they have stayed stable against each other. Against commodity-based currencies like the Canadian and Australian dollars, though, the pound has been on the slide.

This week less about another dramatic policy announcement and more about whether the dollar can hold its advantage. Sterling and the euro will be hoping for signs of economic resilience, while the dollar could find its recent strength tested if American activity begins to lose momentum.