| Time | Country | Event | Period | Previous value | Forecast | Actual |
|---|
| 07:00 | Germany | Industrial Production s.a. (MoM) | December | -0.2% | -0.4% | -1.6% |
GBP strengthened against other major currencies in the European session on Wednesday as the latest UK house price statistics reinforced the views that the Bank of England (BoE) won't start easing policy any time soon.
Halifax reported that house prices in Britain jumped 1.3% MoM in January 2024, following a 1.1% MoM climb in December 2024. This was the fourth straight monthly gain in house prices, the rate of which was also the strongest since June 2022. Compared to January 2023, the house prices surged 2.5%, the most in a year.
Further evidence of resilience in the British housing market supported the notion that the central bank of the United Kingdom won’t be in a rush to decrease its interest rates.
Meanwhile, the BoE’s Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden acknowledged this morning that her focus had shifted to thinking about how long rates need to remain at their current level, instead of whether they might need to be tightened further.