Forex Pros — U.K. industrial order expectations unexpectedly improved in June, industry data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, the Confederation of British Industry said its index of industrial order expectations improved to 1.0 in June, compared to reading of -2.0 in May.
Analysts had expected the index to decline to -5.0 in June.
On the index, a reading above 0.0 indicates increasing order volume is expected, below indicates expectations are for lower volume.
U.K. manufacturers continue to report healthy order books and expect further output growth in the coming quarter, though at a slightly slower pace than over the past few months.
Price pressures remain a concern, with 31% of manufacturers predicting they will raise output prices over the coming quarter, and 5% expecting to lower prices.
Commenting on the report, CBI Chief Economic Advisor Ian McCafferty said, “Factory output is still set to rise solidly over the coming quarter, but expectations for growth have moderated compared with recent months, when output prospects were particularly strong.”
Following the release of that data, the pound was down against the U.S. dollar, with GBP/USD easing down 0.13% to trade at 1.6182.
Meanwhile, European stock markets were broadly higher. The FTSE 100 jumped 0.55%, the EURO STOXX 50 gained 0.75%, France’s CAC 40 rose 0.8%, while Germany’s DAX advanced 0.5%.
ForexPros.com
