Yesterday, the Bank of England left monetary policy steady, as expected by the market. The British Pound was volatile following the decision to keep interest rates at their current levels, signalling cautiously that the next move would be a rate drop.
Data-wise, Eurozone flash HICP inflation fell to 2.8% in January, matching expectations. Core inflation was recorded at 3.3%, slightly higher than the 3.2% expectation.
In other news, the most recent weekly initial unemployment claims statistic in the United States increased to 224k (up from 214k expected). Meanwhile, the manufacturing ISM increased to 49.1 (against the 47.0 forecast). However, the data had little impact on market mood.
Currency-wise, the dollar gave back some of its gains from the day before. Overall, the dollar fell almost 0.7% against the euro and sterling.
Today’s main release will be the January US labour market data. Payrolls are expected to increase by 180k this month (up from 216k the prior month). The unemployment rate is anticipated to climb slightly, to 3.8% from 3.7%, but average wage growth is expected to remain steady.