The FTSE was down 10 points in early trading this morning despite a third S&P 500 record high in the US, as sentiment in Asia once again waned overnight.
However, it’s the Pound that remains in focus today as the third of three big data releases is due out this morning. This time it’s the turn of Bank of England Governor, Mark Carney, to provide us with the latest monetary policy update.
Spreadex analyst, Connor Campbell noted “Wednesday’s worse than forecast average earnings index figure – which came in at just 2.1%, far lower than the 2.6% and 2.9% inflation readings in July and August respectively – likely puts the kibosh on any BoE rate hike this month.”
“However, investors are still interested in hearing any hints as to what exactly it will take to push Mark Carney and co. to act. Along those lines, whether anyone joins Michael Saunders and Ian McCafferty on the hawkish side of the divide could be the biggest talking point coming out of the meeting, especially if that person if chief economist Andy Haldane.”
There’s some significant data being released in the US later today too, which could see some movement in the Dollar. The US Inflation and Earnings prints are due out at lunchtime. Accendo Markets analyst, Mike van Dulken commented “Headline Inflation is expected to tick marginally higher for a second straight month, much to the relief of Fed policymakers, however the Core measure, usually seen as the central bank’s preferred measure, is expected to dip to a 33-month low.”
“Just like in the UK, with a similar inflation/jobs/wages quandary, real average earnings growth may even be of more interest.”
All three major US indices closed at fresh record highs yesterday as Energy stocks benefited from improved Crude Oil prices. Mike van Dulken added “The Dow Jones led the way thanks to gains for Chevron, which negated losses for Caterpillar, while the S&P 500 ticked marginally higher thanks to its Energy sector offsetting Tech losses following Tuesday’s record high close for the sector.”
