LONDON — Sterling strengthened against the dollar on Wednesday, as data showing British retail sales unexpectedly surged in August bolstered expectations the Bank of England will lift rates from record lows before year-end. Sterling jumped by almost a cent against the dollar on the publication of the numbers, which showed monthly sales growth accelerated to 1.0 percent, the fastest since April and easily beating forecasts of a 0.2 percent increase. The pound then eased back, after a BoE agents' report showed subdued pay growth across British companies and weaker investment intentions. A Reuters poll on Wednesday found that almost two-thirds of economists now expect a BoE rate hike to come in November, though three quarters of those queried believed that tightening policy then would be a mistake. Advertisement Continue reading the main story"Despite our weak growth forecasts, we think that the reassessment of supply and the need to prop up sterling is likely to make the BoE hike in November," Credit Suisse analysts said in a note to clients on Wednesday.

Source: New York Times September 20, 2017 17:15 UTC