THE TAKEAWAY: UK industrial production rises 0.1% in April, better than expected -> PMI for manufacturing recently reached a 14-month high -> Pound trading unchanged
UK industrial production increased at the slowest rate in three months in April, according to the UK Office for National Statistics. Production rose 0.1% over the month, beating expectations for no change and less than the 0.7% industrial production increase seen in March. Industrial production declined 0.6% from April 2012, and manufacturing declined 0.2% on a monthly basis.
The most recent manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index for May was reported at a 14-month high of 51.3 in May, as all three PMI’s for the month indicated expanded activity. The UK economy avoided a triple dip recession in the first quarter of this year, when the economy expanded 0.3%. Signs of improved economic growth for the second quarter are Pound positive.
However, the Pound did not react significantly in Forex markets to the better than expected industrial production. GBP/USD is trading slightly above 1.5550 at the time of this writing, and resistance might continue to be provided around 1.5595, by the 50% retracement of the decline from the January high to the March low.
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GBPUSDDaily: June 11, 2013
Chart created by Benjamin Spier using Marketscope 2.0
-- Written by Benjamin Spier, DailyFX Research. Feedback can be sent to bbspier@fxcm.com .
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