Sterling falls ahead of expected Bank of England rate hold
The British pound is 0.22% lower against the U.S. dollar at $1.339 at 7:25 a.m. in London, and flat at a euro rate of around 0.855, ahead of the Bank of England rate decision at midday.
A rate hold is widely expected with figures on Wednesday confirming inflation remains well above the BOE’s 2% target, coming in at 3.4% in May.
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The Federal Reserve also kept rates on hold at its meeting yesterday, and trimmed its projection for reductions in the coming years. The greenback has been given an even bigger boost over the last week by a safe haven flight amid fears over escalating conflict in the Middle East.
ING FX Strategist Francesco Pesole, meanwhile, in a Tuesday note, pointed to signs of the euro strengthening against sterling, unless the BOE surprises with a more hawkish-than-expected message today. Higher interest rates tend to support a domestic currency.
“Geopolitical risks generally harm the pound more than the euro, and the data flow has been GBP-negative of late,” Pesole said.
— Jenni Reid
Good morning, here are the opening calls
London at dawn.
Dukas | Universal Images Group | Getty Images
Good morning from London, and welcome to CNBC’s live blog covering European financial markets and the latest regional and global business news, data and earnings.
Futures data from IG suggests a choppy start for European markets, with London’s FTSE looking set to open 22 points higher at 8,862, Germany’s DAX down 88 points at 23,253, France’s CAC 40 lower 32 points at 7,619 and Italy’s FTSE MIB dropping 105 points to 39,321.
Global market sentiment is becoming more skittish over the conflict between Iran and Israel and the possibility of further U.S. involvement.
On Wednesday evening, U.S. President Donald Trump convened his national security advisors in the White House Situation Room for the second time in two days. Earlier, Trump said he had not yet decided whether to give the greenlight to a U.S. strike in support of Israel’s ongoing bombardment of Iranian targets.
Investors are also weighing the U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision to keep interest rates steady, leaving its benchmark rate unchanged in a 4.25%-4.5% range, where it has stood since December.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled that the Fed committee will wait to see the impact of Trump’s broad-spanning tariffs on inflation before considering any adjustments to monetary policy. Still, the central bank pointed to two interest rate cuts later this year.
— Holly Ellyatt
Central banks are in focus Thursday
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) in Bern, Switzerland, on Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024.
Stefan Wermuth | Bloomberg | Getty Images
It’s a big day for central bank action on Thursday, with monetary policy decisions coming from Turkey, Norway, Switzerland and Britain.
The central banks of the latter two countries will be closely watched, with the Swiss National Bank likely to lower its interest rate to zero this week. The Bank of England is expected to hold interest rates, but investors will be waiting to see how policymakers voted and for any guidance on the rate cut trajectory, with most analysts expecting a cut in August.
There are no other major earnings or data releases in Europe. U.S. markets are closed for the Juneteenth holiday on Thursday.
— Holly Ellyatt
