Pound Declines After Bank Of England's Minutes

06:00, 23rd April 2014

(RTTNews) - The pound slipped against other major currencies in early European deals on Wednesday after the release of Bank Of England's minutes of monetary policy meeting held in April.

Policymakers of the Bank of England unanimously decided to maintain the key bank rate at a historic low of 0.50 percent and monetary stimulus at GBP 375 billion, the minutes of meeting held on April 9 showed today.

Against the yen, the pound fell to 172.20, from an early multi-week high of 172.79 hit in the early Asian session. The pair worth 172.64 at yesterday's close. If pound falls further, 170.45 is seen as the next support level.

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said inflation may exceed the official estimate in the fiscal year ended March.

Consumer price inflation was slightly higher in fiscal 2013 that the central bank's projection of 0.7 percent, he told a parliamentary session today.

The pound slipped to 1.4810 against the Swiss franc for the first time since April 18. At yesterday's close, the pair worth 1.4894. The next possible downside target for the pound lies around the 1.47 area.

The pound fell to a 6-day low of 0.8242 against the euro, off early high of 0.8201 hit in the early Asian session. The next support level of the pound is seen at 0.83 area.

The survey data from Markit Economics showed that the composite output index rose unexpectedly to 54.0 in April from 53.1 in March. The latest reading was the highest since May 2011.

The pound held steady against the dollar, after falling to 1.6798 earlier. The pound may face support at the 1.67 level.

Looking ahead, the U.S manufacturing PMI for April and new home sales data for March are due in the New York session.