BoE hike 0.5% to 5%, with expectations of 6% this year

By Greg Smith on Tuesday, June 27th, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – BoE hike 0.5% to 5%, with expectations of 6% this year Markets were fully expecting a rise in interest rates from the Bank of England last week.  However, with the higher-than-expected inflation data and wage growth, we saw the BoE hike rates by 0.5% instead of 0.25%.  It is likely that the committee […]


Sterling hits 14-month high as BoE expected to hike again

By Greg Smith on Wednesday, June 21st, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – Sterling hits 14-month high as BoE expected to hike again This week, attention will be on sterling with the Bank of England rate decision on Thursday.  Pretty much everyone expects a further 0.25% rate hike to 4.75%.  That will make it 13 in a row.  The BoE are still clearly concerned about persistent […]


ECB to hike again, whilst the Fed is expected to pause

By Greg Smith on Monday, June 12th, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – Positive labour market and GDP expected We now have two weeks to wait until the next Bank of England rate decision on 22nd June.  The data will be closely watched in the run-up to that decision which may see a pause in rate hikes.  Tomorrow we will get the labour market report which […]


Inflation falls to 8.7%, but Bank of England remain alert

By Greg Smith on Wednesday, May 24th, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – Inflation falls to 8.7%, but Bank of England remain alert The main highlight for the UK this week is inflation.  Energy and other goods have pulled inflation lower to 8.7% from 10.1% in March.  The drop in inflation was smaller than some expected with forecasts closer to 8%.  This will keep pressure on […]


Bank of England hiked for the twelfth time to 4.5%

By Greg Smith on Monday, May 15th, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – Bank of England hiked for the twelfth time to 4.5% Last week, the Bank of England increased rates for the twelfth time in a row.  As expected, they raised rates this time by 0.25% to 4.5%.  The BoE persistently high inflation on higher food prices and called industry bosses in to discuss.  In […]


Bank of England to hike rates 0.25% following Fed and ECB

By Greg Smith on Wednesday, May 10th, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – Bank of England to hike 0.25% on stronger economy This week, the focus shifts to the Bank of England (BoE) rate decision tomorrow, following the Fed and ECB updates last week. This meeting will be followed by a press conference with Governor Bailey.  Markets expect a 0.25% hike to 4.5%, following a similar […]


Local election results as we wait for Bank of England

By Greg Smith on Tuesday, May 2nd, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – Local elections as we wait for the Bank of England Whilst the other major central banks have meetings this week, we will have to wait until next Thursday to hear from the Bank of England.  The main data that will be of interest this week is the PMIs.  The readings for manufacturing and […]


UK Inflation to fall below 10% with energy price drops

By Greg Smith on Monday, April 17th, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – Inflation to fall below 10% with energy price drops This week, the focus moves back to data on employment and inflation.  The March price data are forecast to show a decline in inflation, with energy prices falling this year.  This significant fall will be offset by higher food prices and wage costs.  Markets […]


Bank of England hike 25bp – will act if inflation persists

By Greg Smith on Tuesday, March 28th, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – Bank of England hike 0.25%, ready to act if inflation persists Last week, as expected, the Bank of England increased rates by 0.25% to 4.25%.  This was widely anticipated particularly after the jump higher in inflation to 10.4%. This latest hike is the smallest since June last year, which supports the expectations that […]


Bank of England decision likely to be tight amid banking concerns

By Greg Smith on Monday, March 20th, 2023

in Blog, Market Insights

GBP – Bank of England decision likely to be tight amid banking concerns The focus this week will be on interest rates in the US and the UK.  Before the banking concerns, the markets expected the Bank of England (BoE) to raise rates.  The decision on Thursday and may now be a close call, given […]


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