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Sterling hits one-month high as UK growth better than expected - YAHOO FINANCE
Pound (GBPUSD=X, GBPEUR=X)
The pound rose after the UK economy posted better-than-expected growth in the second quarter of the year.
Sterling rose 0.1% against the dollar to $1.3583, the highest level seen in a month, and gained 0.2% versus the euro to €1.1618 as the stronger growth made interest rate cuts by the Bank of England less likely.
ICAEW economics director Suren Thiru said: “While these stronger than expected figures may not ease concerns among rate-setters over the health of the UK economy, a September interest rate cut remains implausible given mounting concerns over rising inflation.”
The economy grew 0.4% month-on-month in June, snapping a run of negative prints — May was -0.1% — and beating expectations for a more subdued recovery of 0.1%.
Read more: UK economic growth slows between April and June
British output rose by 0.3% in the second quarter of 2025, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. That was higher than the 0.1% expected by economists polled by Reuters.
The US dollar index (DX-Y.NYB), which measures the greenback against a basket of six currencies, was near multi-week lows at 97.79.
