No change in policy nor in the voting pattern, but the BOE did change inflation and growth forecasts: inflation to the upside and growth to the downside, more or less with data coming out recently.

GBP/USD made a small move towards 1.45 but we are back to range.

The Bank of England was widely expected to leave the interest rate unchanged at 0.50%, as it has been since March 2009. Some had expected a change in the voting pattern: from a unanimous 9:0 vote in favor of no-change to perhaps one member voting to cut rates, in order to fight low inflation and/or to preempt a potential vote in favor of a Brexit. However, chances seemed slim for a change in vote that would immediately weigh on the pound.

So, the focus is on the words coming out of both the meeting minutes and perhaps more importantly the Quarterly Inflation Report (QIR), which includes forecasts for growth and inflation.

 

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