Bank of England Sees Risk of Further Pound Gains

Talking Points:

• UK Jobless Claims Fall the Most Since November 2013
• British Pound Little-Changed against US Dollar Following BOE Minutes
• Minutes from this Month’s BOE Policy Meeting sees Risk of Further Pound Gains

The British Pound was little-changed following a round of better-than-expected labor statistics. Moreover, the minutes from this month’s Bank of England Policy meeting had little impact on the British Pound. The UK Unemployment Rate remains unchanged at 7.2 percent, but jobless claims – number of people claiming unemployment – fell by 34,600, and beating estimates calling for a 25,000 decrease.

The better-than-expected labor data did little to sway the sterling and BOE minutes offered no volatility. Last month the BoE revised its forward guidance policy as the unemployment rate quickly approached the 7 percent threshold that would spark conversation for a rate-hike. The minutes from this month’s Bank of England (BoE) Policy meeting says it sees risk of further pound gains as U.K. economy recovers and though the market reaction to the updated guidance was limited they believe the markets understand the new guidance on monetary stance. The BoE is now focusing on a broader range of statistics to decide if the economy is strong enough to handle higher interest rates.

GBP/USD 5min Chart - March 19, 2014

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-- Written by David Maycotte, DailyFX Research Team. Questions, comments or concerns can be sent to [email protected].

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