BOE’s Mann: My views on interest rates are not about defending sterling

Bank of England policymaker Catherine Mann said on Monday that her views on the BOE’s rate outlook were not about defending the British pound.

“There is an important difference of view on the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on the resilience of UK consumption,” Mann added. “Since the May MPC meeting, I have become more concerned about the embeddedness of UK inflation and price expectations.”

As for the market’s reaction, the GBP/USD pair continues to fluctuate in its daily range and was last seen posting modest gains at 1.2245. GBP/USD is little changed in mid-1.22s. This figure stands in the way of the pair regaining the 1.23 mark, which would improve the pound’s outlook, economists at Scotiabank report.

The GBP follows the broad dollar mood until Wednesday’s inflation print with the UK’s weak macroeconomic backdrop and likely overpriced BoE expectations (~190bps by year-end) acting as headwinds.