Bets against the pound hit 16-month high amid interest rate cut hopes

Thanks for joining me today. We start with a look at the outlook for the pound, which investors are predicting will slump as the Bank of England cuts interest rates before the US Federal Reserve.

Wagers placed against sterling by currency speculators have hit a 16-month high, according to data from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

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What happened overnight 

Asian stocks slipped and the dollar climbed as markets assessed mixed signals from US policymakers and economic data on the path for Federal Reserve interest rates.

The yen sank even with the threat of currency intervention from Japanese authorities to support it.

Crude oil wallowed near two-month lows amid signs of easing supply pressure and continued hopes for a Middle East ceasefire.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slid 0.4pc, with mainland Chinese blue chips and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng each down about 0.6pc.

Japan’s Nikkei slumped about 1.4pc as traders took profits following the previous session’s 1.6pc surge. The tech-heavy index also succumbed to pressure from a sell-off in US chip stocks on Tuesday.

In America, the Dow Jones Industrial Average of 30 leading US companies edged up 0.1pc to 38,884.26. The broader S&P 500 gained 0.2pc to 5,187.70, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite index dipped 0.1pc to 16,332.56.

Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari suggested the Federal Reserve may need to forgo interest rate cuts this year due to stubborn inflation.

The yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds fell to 4.45pc from 4.49pc late on Monday.