From the UK, on Wednesday, Construction PMI data was released. At 53.1, up from 52.2 in March, the seasonally adjusted Markit/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index® (PMI® ) pointed to a solid rise in overall construction output. The latest reading was well below the post-crisis peak seen in January 2014 (64.6), but still signalled the sharpest rate of expansion so far this year. Civil engineering was the best performing sub-category of construction activity in April, with the rate of expansion the fastest since March 2016. Growth of residential building also accelerated, reaching a four-month high. Commercial building work increased only slightly and at a weaker pace than in March.
Thursday's session was marked by UK Services PMI figures. At 55.8 in April, up from 55.0 in March, the headline seasonally adjusted Markit/CIPS Services PMI® Business Activity Index posted above the 50.0 no-change threshold for the ninth month in a row. The latest reading revealed the fastest upturn in service sector output since December 2016. The robust and accelerated rise in services activity was linked to resilient business-to-business demand, new product launches and, in some cases, another rise in sales to overseas clients.
This week markets will be looking at:
Industrial Production (Thursday 10:30)
Official Bank Rate/Monetary Policy Summary (Thursday 13:00)
BOE Inflation Report (Thursday 13:00)
