MARKET REPORT

STERLING tumbled yesterday after the Bank of England opted to keep interest rates on hold and revised down growth forecasts amid a flurry of data confirming the economy is stalling.

The Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted 7-2 to keep rates on hold at 0.5% following the shock slowdown in growth to 0.1% in the first quarter, as the impact of the Beast from the East compounded woes in consumer and construction sectors.

The pound tanked on the news, falling 0.5% against the US dollar to 1.348. Versus the euro, sterling fell 0.75% to 1.133.

The dire first quarter performance also saw the Bank downgrade its 2018 growth outlook to 1.4%, from 1.8% predicted in February.

The pound was further dented by official figures from the Office for National Statistics, which showed that construction output suffered its biggest decline since August 2012. Manufacturing output also fell by 0.1% in March compared to February.

As the pound tumbled the FTSE 100 went in the opposite direction, ending the day well up, rising 0.5%, or 38.45 points to a three month high of 7,700.97.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were up 322p to 5,568p, up 9.15p to 160.35p, up 10.4p at 286.5p, up 9p to 297.3p and up 19.8p to 655.2p.

The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were down 17.55p to 221.05p, down 426p to down 8.95p

down 5,674p, to 146.5p and 40p to 1,972p.