From the UK, yesterday, Mortgage Approvals data was published. BBA Mortgage Approvals rose to 47,500, beating forecasts on increase to 45,200. Richard Woolhouse, Chief Economist at the BBA, said: “The start of the year has seen a significant rise in mortgage borrowing. It seems that this has been driven, in part, by borrowers looking to get ahead of the increases in stamp duty for buy-to-let and second home buyers scheduled to come into effect in April.
the US session New Home Sales figures were released. Purchases of new homes dropped more than forecast in January as contract signings slumped in the western U.S. by the most since May 2010.
Sales declined 9.2% to a 494,000 annualized pace after a 544,000 rate in December that was the strongest in 10 months, Commerce Department data showed Wednesday. The median forecast of economists called for 520,000. Sales in the West fell 32.1%.
Focus of tomorrow's session will be on UK GDP data. No change from Prelim's 0.5% growth is expected. In the US session Unemployment Claims and Durable Goods Orders figures will be released. Analysts predict increase to 272,000 in Unemployment Claims and 3.0% rise in Durable Goods Orders.
Figures to watch:
Second Estimate GDP (Thursday 10:30)
Unemployment Claims (Thursday 14:30)
Durable Goods Orders (Thursday 14:30)