• EUR/GBP is rising for the second day in a row after comments from BoE’s Bailey
• The BoE Governor’s comments suggested interest rates would continue falling gradually as inflation eased.
• The Euro remains under pressure by weak data and rising bets of the ECB cutting rates in October. 

EUR/GBP continues its recovery, trading up 0.40% in the 0.8360s on Wednesday. The Pound started losing ground against the single currency after commentary from Bank of England (BoE) governor Andrew Bailey, in which he said that he saw interest rates continuing to fall gradually. This, in turn, put pressure on Sterling since lower interest rates attract less capital inflows. 

“I'm very encouraged that the path of inflation is downwards therefore I do think the path for interest rates will be downwards, gradually, to the ´neutral’ rate,” Bailey said on Tuesday. The neutral rate of interest is the long run equilibrium level, or “ideal” level for interest rates in the economy. 

His remarks come after a close call five-to-four vote at the BoE’s August meeting backed up a quarter point cut from the bank, pushing borrowing costs down to 5.00%. Financial markets, meanwhile, are pricing in a drop to 4.5% by the end of 2024, and lower to 3.5% by the end of 2025.

BoE policymaker Megan Greene was more hawkish than Bailey on Wednesday when she said that a “cautious, steady-as-she-goes approach to monetary policy easing is appropriate.”

Greene added “I believe the risks to activity are to the upside, which could suggest that the long-run neutral rate is higher and - all else equal - our stance of policy isn’t as restrictive as we had thought.”  Greene was one of four on the MPC who voted to hold rates in August.