GBP: Carney offers sterling bulls a glimmer of hope ahead of Feb BoE meeting - ING

According to Viraj Patel, FX Strategist at ING, the BOE Governor Mark Carney did not divulge much at his testimony to the House of Lords, though there were a few glimmers of hope for GBP bulls ahead of next week’s Super Thursday BoE meeting (Feb 8).

Key quotes:

“The Governor noted that the IMF’s latest forecast of 1.5% growth for the UK economy was ‘light’, potentially signalling upside risks to the central bank’s own GDP profile. Moreover, this could alter the low growth and above-target inflation trade-off in a way that allows the BoE to press ahead with another near-term hike. We look for the MPC to retain a fairly neutral stance next week, though a hawkish tilt may give GBP a knee-jerk boost.”