The unemployment rate for those aged 16 and over for the three months ending January 2015 was 5.7%, missing predictions on decrease to 5.6%. Comparing the three months ending January 2015 with a year earlier, pay for employees in Great Britain increased by 1.8% including bonuses and by 1.6% excluding bonuses. Analysts were anticipating 2.2% rise.

Bank of England policymakers see a risk that sterling could strengthen further and leave inflation below target for longer, minutes from their March meeting showed. The minutes of the BoE Monetary Policy Committee's March 4-5 meeting showed all nine members thought the very weak short-term outlook for inflation warranted keeping interest rates on hold at a record low 0.5 percent.

"This had the potential to prolong the period for which CPI inflation would remain below the target and exacerbate the risk that lower expectations of inflation might become more persistent," the minutes said. All MPC members agreed it was more likely than not BoE interest rates would rise over the next three years.

Friday brought U.K. Public Sector Net Borrowing data. U.K. private sector budget deficit increased to £6.6 billion in February. This was below market forecasts on £7.7 billion deficit. The public sector net debt has been revised upwards by £5.5 billion, from October 2014, as the result of a correction to previously published estimates which were erroneously double counting bank deposits held by the central government body, UK Asset Resolution Ltd.

Next week markets will be looking at:

CBI Industrial Order Expectations (Monday 12:00)

CPI/PPI Input (Tuesday 10:30)

BBA Mortgage Approvals (Wednesday 10:30)

CBI Realized Sales (Wednesday 12:00)

Retail Sales (Thursday 10:30)