There were no economic data releases on the schedule yesterday, but figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders showed that the number of cars being produced in the UK fell for the third consecutive month in August. According to the trade body, some 89,254 cars were produced in UK factories last month, which is a decline of 13% from the same month the previous year. It isn’t great news, especially when we consider that in the first eight months of 2018, the total amount of cars produced has fallen by 5% from the same period in 2017.
Today kicks off with the Gfk consumer confidence reading for September. It is expected to fall even further this month from -7 in August to -8. We will also see the Nationwide housing prices for the same month. However, the headline release from the UK is the final reading of the GDP growth rate for the second quarter of 2018. Both the quarterly and annual figures are expected to increase, but several releases have defied expectations in recent times and we could see some sterling movements if the readings miss forecast.
