ECB just cut... Is it BOE’s turn next week? The European Central Bank (ECB) initiated its cutting cycle last week on June 6. Expectations are that ECB policymakers are in no hurry to follow this first cut with a second one.
Next week, we will see how much of a hurry the Bank of England (BOE) is to follow the ECB.
A Reuters poll of 65 economists indicates the BOE is likely to wait until August to cut interest rates. The consensus had previously settled on a cut on June 20, so bear that in mind when taking their forecasts into account.
UK inflation eased to 2.3% in April, close to the central bank's 2.0% target, from a peak of 11.1% in October 2022. So why wouldn't the BOE cut rates this month? Well, wage and services inflation, both watched closely by the BoE, are still around 6%. The question that arises is how much the BOE weighs inflation in this sub-section of the economy against overall inflation.
On the GBP/USD chart, after reaching a three-month high, buyers were unable to keep the pair above 1,2800 to challenge the year-to-date (YTD) high of 1.2894. The next support level is possibly 1.2700.
