Last week, market participants digested the aftermath of the weeks key risk events which included the latest US jobs report. Financiers watched the greenback surge higher following the strong report which saw over 900K jobs being added to the US economy. The figure was matched by an unemployment rate of 5.4% which beat expectations. The week ahead will see several FOMC members speaking who will be reminded of the need to begin considering tapering following on from the recent data releases.
UK Focus
In the UK, the BOE left rates unchanged as expected and maintained their stance on inflation being transitory as markets observed another MPC meeting. The asset purchase facility which is currently at £895bln was left unchanged and had little pushback following the exit of MPC member Haldane who had called for a £50bln reduction in the previous meeting. Sterling remained stronger over the remainder of the week with EUR/GBP slumping to its worst levels since April.
