Pound edges higher toward $1.355 after Healey fiscal-discipline speech
The pound edged higher toward $1.355 as investors digested Chancellor John Healey’s first major speech ahead of the Oct. 28 budget.
355 as investors digested Chancellor John Healey’s first major speech ahead of the Oct. 28 budget. Healey said he would maintain fiscal discipline and restore the UK’s credibility in international bond markets, while setting out plans to support regional growth by using institutions including the National Wealth Fund and British Business Bank to draw in private investment. Higher borrowing costs, driven by renewed inflation concerns amid the US-Iran war and uncertainty over Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s spending plans, are eroding the government’s fiscal headroom and fueling expectations of tax increases in the budget.
Oil prices approached seven-week highs after US strikes on Iranian oil tankers. UK firms increased full-time hiring in August for the first time in four years, while house prices fell year-on-year for the first time since November 2023.