United Kingdom’s Manufacturing Output Declines; Sterling Hits a Low

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By Jacob Maslow

The sterling suffered on Tuesday after reports that the UK’s manufacturing output fell farther than expected for the month of October. The GBP/USD is down from 1.50122 to a session low of 1.4992. The country’s Q4 growth outlook has been dampened as a result of the news.

Manufacturing output fell 0.4% in the month of October according to the Office for National Statistics. Initial forecasts had a decline of just 0.1% after a strong September output reached an increase of 0.9%. Year-on-year, manufacturing output fell 0.1% in the United Kingdom. Analysts expected year-on-year growth of 0.1%.

Industrial output remains strong in the country, reaching 0.1% in October. Industrial output has beaten forecasts, which predict year-on-year growth of 1.2%. Output is currently 1.7% on the year. October output levels met analyst expectations.

The Bank of England will be conducting its monetary policy announcement on Thursday with analysts expecting the bank to hold rates at 0.5%. The pound also lost against the euro, with the EUR/GBP up 0.77% to 0.7254 on Tuesday.

Growing fears that China’s economy will remain in a slump have caused markets around the world to suffer. China released data that exports from the country declined by 6.8% year-on-year in the month of November. Imports into China also fell 8.7% on weak global demand.

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