The U.K economy is back in focus after yesterday's inflation data markets will be watching the minutes of the BoE and how the last monetary policy vote went in the last meeting, where three policymakers have probably preferred to boost QE for the third straight month.
Both Governor Sir Mervyn King and Paul Fisher have joined the dovish camp of David miles since February, and voted to expand the asset-purchase program by 25 billion pounds to 400 billion pounds. The three MPC members likely held their grounds in the last meeting.
Expectations are building up for another month of MPC split-vote but some analysts believe other members could join the dovish camp and call for additional monetary easing. The central bank kept the interest rate at 0.50 percent and quantitative easing at 375 billion pounds.
The sterling is under the heels of the U.S. dollar today trading lower at $1.5337 ahead of the MPC vote for the rates and APF. An upgrade of the dovish vote will press even harder on British stocks and the currency, still seeking a solid rebound from this year's lows of $1.48.
The British agenda also features the latest employment report due today. The number of Briton filing for unemployment benefits is expected to remain flat in March compared to a drop of 1,500 in February. The three-month to February ILO unemployment rate probably stood at 7.8 percent.
A surge in U.K. jobless rate could be quite inevitable following measures taken by the coalition government led by David Cameron - the austerity mania that drove the economy into a series of economic setbacks, latest was contraction of 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter.
The International Monetary Fund yesterday slashed its U.K. growth forecasts for this year and next by 0.3 percentage points to 0.7 percent and 1.5 percent, urging the central bank and treasury to act and bolster the economic recovery, just months before the arrival of new governor Mark Carney.
IMOH, Clement I.
+234 802 905 9344
+234 703 569 1707
No comments:
Post a Comment