Sterling starts the day slightly on the back foot against EUR and USD, but only slipping part way back towards last Tuesday’s position.
Yesterday’s Construction purchasing manager’s index (PMI) came in slightly below expectations at 55.2, compared to last month’s 56.5 and an expectation of 58.7. This is all being blamed on supply problems for materials and transport. Prices of concrete, steel, timber and fuel have risen sharply.
This morning the Halifax House Price Index came in at a 7.1% rise, although below expectations and below last week’s Nationwide index which showed an 11% rise, this still represents the highest priced UK house prices ever, at an average of £262,954.
A quiet early part of the week for data will liven up on Friday with GDP and industrial data, but look out before that for Europe’s interest rate decision on Thursday.
