Sterling on the front foot

Sterling is on the front foot this morning on the back of one of the latest opinion polls in the UK general election, namely You Gov’s MRP poll, with the pound strengthening to 85p against the euro and to well over $1.29 against the dollar. The latter, meanwhile, is a little firmer against the single currency at around $1.10

The You Gov MRP poll predicts a comfortable majority of just under 70 seats for the Conservatives in the general election – the same polling methodology at a similar stage in the last general election most accurately predicted the eventual outcome of a hung parliament – with a swing to the party in those constituencies that voted heavily (60%+) in favour of leaving the EU in the June 2016 referendum

There was a mixed bag of economic data out of the US yesterday, with GDP growth in the third quarter revised up a touch from the initial estimate and capital goods orders (an indicator of business investment) rising strongly in October but the underlying rate of inflation slipping further below the Fed’s 2% target for a second month in a row last month

Stocks advanced yesterday, despite the mixed data in the US, and bond yields edged a little higher with the benchmark US 10-year yield up 3-4bps to 1.77%

It will be probably quiet on markets today with the US on Thanksgiving Holiday, though we do get some non-US economic data releases including the European Commission’s Economic Sentiment Indicator for the Euro Area and consumer confidence in the UK