Finance
Sterling edges up after jump in UK inflation
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on February 19, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 26, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on February 19, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 26, 2026
UK inflation rose to 3% in January, exceeding forecasts. Sterling initially spiked but stabilized, impacting the Bank of England's rate cut outlook.
LONDON (Reuters) - The pound edged up on Wednesday, after data showed UK consumer inflation rose faster than expected in January, weakening the case for the Bank of England to deliver another two rate cuts this year.
The Office for National Statistics said its consumer price index rose at an annual rate of 3% in January, above forecasts for a rise of 2.8%. Services inflation, something the BoE has flagged as an obstacle, rose at a rate of 5%, from 4.4% in December, but was below expectations for rise of 5.2%.
Sterling spiked after the numbers, but quickly fell back to where it was before the data. By 0718 GMT it was up 0.05% at $1.262.
Against the euro, the pound held steady at 82.86 pence, roughly where it was before the inflation report.
(Reporting by Lucy Raitano; Editing by Amanda Cooper)
The annual rate of UK consumer inflation rose to 3% in January, which was above the forecast of 2.8%.
Sterling initially spiked after the inflation numbers were released but quickly fell back to its previous levels.
By 0718 GMT, Sterling was up 0.05% at $1.262 following the inflation report.
Against the euro, the pound held steady at 82.86 pence, remaining roughly unchanged from before the inflation report.
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