Today's news headlines:

‘Falls in UK mortgage rates predicted as BoE signals dovish outlook’. Despite the Bank of England raising its base interest rate to three per cent yesterday, the single most aggressive hike in 23 years, the central bank governor, Andrew Bailey, appeared to suggest in the aftermath that markets had somewhat overestimated their forecasts for future rises. The dovish tone set by Bailey has fuelled speculation that banks and building societies could slash the costs of UK fixed-rate mortgages since the current high costs were set when markets predicted a much more hawkish BoE. The day before the Kwarteng mini-Budget, average five-year fixed rates were 4.75% before skyrocketing to 6.51% by late October, marking the first time they have broken the 6% since 2010. (Financial Times)

‘US jobs growth set to have cooled for third consecutive month’. In the wake of the Federal Reserve’s aggressive efforts to calm decades-high inflation, US job growth is expected to subside for a third consecutive month. Employers are seeking to satisfy a strong demand for workers in the face of labour shortages which has helped to drive up wages, adding further inflationary pressure. After adding 315,000 and 263,000 jobs to the US economy in August and September, respectively, Bloomberg predicts the figure for October will be released today at a modest 200,000. (Financial Times)

Today

Rumours of a China reopening plan have caused a ripple effect in the west. The European stock market is expected to open higher this morning, ahead of the widely anticipated US jobs data. Crude oil futures continued to rise this morning, hitting a high of $90.52 a barrel, as traders await news on a potential price cap on Russian exports aimed at throttling funding to Moscow. 

Events

ECB President Christine Lagarde speaks: 9:30AM
Eurozone PPI m/m (Sep): 10:00AM
MPC Member Huw Pill speaks: 12:15AM
Canadian Unemployment Rate: 12:30AM
US Unemployment Rate: 12:30AM
FOMC Member Susan Collins speaks: 2:00PM
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Interbank rates*:

GBP/USD: 1.1210
GBP/EUR: 1.1475
EUR/USD: 0.9770
USD/CAD: 1.3670

 

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*Indicative interbank rates taken on the day of writing. Please speak to your Dealer to find out the current rates available for you.