MARKET NEWS
Euro, sterling steady as traders assess impact of rising borrowing costs - REUTERS
LONDON, Sept 3 (Reuters) - The British pound and euro edged higher on Wednesday, as investors paused to assess the impact of rising borrowing costs after a surge in bond yields.
Long-dated government borrowing costs from Japan to Britain touched fresh multi-year highs on Wednesday on nagging concerns over the fiscal health of some of the world's biggest economies, although a degree of calm was returning after a sharp sell-off.
Similarly, the pound last traded 0.1% higher at $1.3409, recouping some of its more than 1% tumble on Tuesday. Against the euro , sterling flattened at 86.86 pence, after falling 0.6% on Tuesday.
In the gilt market, Britain's 30-year borrowing costs rose to their highest levels since 1998.
"Yesterday’s rise in EUR/GBP highlights just how sensitive the pound is to yield increases, but we take a conservative view and don’t expect the pound to fall much further on gilt moves alone," said Francesco Pesole, FX strategist at ING, adding that long-dated European bonds were also sold off this week.
Investors will be waiting to hear Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, who is due to answer questions from the House of Commons' Treasury Committee at 1315 GMT.