U.K. Business Optimism Hits 14-Month High Before BOE
U.K. Business Optimism Hits 14-Month High Before BOE Decision
(Bloomberg) -- U.K. business optimism jumped to a 14-month high in January, providing more evidence of a post-election bounce on the day Bank of England policy makers announce whether they have decided to cut interest rates.
Lloyds’ gauge of sentiment among companies climbed for a fifth month, the company said Thursday, and a measure of economic optimism reached an 18-month high. London was the most confident region, while firms overall were the least negative on the impact of Brexit since 2018.
The report comes at a time when measures of U.K. sentiment have been under intense scrutiny ahead of the BOE’s January decision. Policy makers have indicated they were on the lookout for signs of a rebound in confidence following Boris Johnson’s decisive election win in December.
The Lloyds’ survey is the latest to suggest a pickup in January, although disappointing reports from December complicate the picture. While bets have been pared this week, investors are still pricing in a more-than 40% chance of a cut on Thursday, making it the most finely balanced decision of Mark Carney’s tenure.
The close debate has meant that, after years of mostly reacting to Brexit news, the pound is once again being moved by economic data releases, even those traders typically would overlook.
Sterling slipped 0.1% to 1.3015 per dollar as at 6:06 a.m. in London, declining for a sixth day.
To contact the reporter on this story: David Goodman in London at dgoodman28@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Paul Gordon at pgordon6@bloomberg.net, Brian Swint, Andrew Atkinson
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