The BoE MPC is expected to keep the UK base rate at 5.25% when it delivers its monthly verdict at 12:00GMT--although 10 of 68 economists polled by Bloomberg forecast another 25bp hike to 5.5%. An unexpected hike would likely spur fresh demand for GBP. Middle Eastern buying helped inflate cable to intra-day highs just shy of touted offers at 1.9355 during the European morning.
EUR/GBP has also been sold to an intra-day low of 0.6796 since the Halifax's 08:00GMT disclosure that UK house prices rose by another 1.8% last month, to stand 9.9% higher on an annualized basis. A EUR/GBP 0.6800 option strike rolls off at today's 10am EST NY cut (15:00GMT). Another "more substantial" 0.6800 expiry is tipped for tomorrow. 1.9275 was today's Asian session GBP/USD low, plumbed after a bout of GBP/JPY selling by US funds.
That selling weighed on GBP/JPY to a low of 222.90. Today's key US event risk is the 13:30GMT disclosure of weekly US jobless claims. Forecast: 330k. February's US employment report will be published tomorrow. NFP consensus forecast: 95k.
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