The Bank of England will publish the minutes from its latest monetary policy meeting at 12pm today and all eyes will be on whether interest rates are set to be raised.
An interest rate hike to 0.5% is largely expected and this is ‘priced in’. However, if this doesn’t materialise, the pound could suffer. The markets will also be watching to see how many officials voted for a hike, any forward guidance on interest rates and monetary policy, as well as the overall tone of the announcement.
With so many factors at play, we could see volatility for the pound later today. It is currently in a strong position against the euro and the dollar ahead of the announcement.
The European Central Bank will also hold its monetary policy meeting. Although it is expected to continue with its ‘cautious’ approach, officials could comment on higher-than-expected inflation figures released yesterday.
Details of Ofgem’s new energy price cap will be released at 11am today as many households wait to find out how much more they will have to pay annually.
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