Inflation and consumer spending reports are due from the U.K. economy this week, but the flash PMI reports might be the ones to watch out for.
Here’s what’s coming up:
Inflation data (Feb. 17, 7:00 am GMT)
- Headline CPI for January to dip from 0.6% to 0.5% year-over-year
- Core CPI to drop from 1.4% to 1.2% y/y for the same month
- PPI input prices probably rose by 0.5% m/m while output prices increased by 0.2%
Retail sales (Feb. 19, 7:00 am GMT)
- Consumer spending likely tumbled by 2.6% in January after earlier 0.3% uptick
- Note that consumer spending accounts for majority of overall economic activity, so sharper than expected fall would mean weaker growth prospects
Flash PMI reports (Feb. 17, 9:30 am GMT)
- Manufacturing index likely dipped from 54.1 to 53.1 in January, reflecting a slower pace of industry expansion
- Services index probably improved from 39.5 to 42.3 to signal a slower pace of contraction
- Even though there have been some upgrades to earlier results, weaker than expected figures might still drag the pound lower
Technical snapshot
- This oscillator puts EUR/GBP in the oversold region and the rest in neutral territory
- Sterling has been most volatile against the Kiwi in the past seven days, moving an average of 116.1 pips per day
Missed last week’s price action? Better check out the GBP Weekly Review for Feb. 8 – 12!
