POUND LIVE: Pound rises after Euro Bank latest update

Sterling strengthened by around 0.1 per cent to 1.090 against the euro, clawing back some of the losses seen yesterday after ECB chief Mario Draghi fuelled expectations the bloc’s money-printing programme would be cut back at the end of 2017.

The eurozone currency has hit multi-year highs against the pound in recent weeks amid expectations monetary policymakers will scale back the so-called asset purchase programme.

Markets are now trying to guess how much the ECB will taper the programme, which currently pumps €60billion into the bloc every month.

Deustche Bank estimates the programme will be cut to €40billion a month until the middle of 2018.

Meanwhile, the pound received a small boost from the latest UK economy data.

Production output was up by 0.4 per cent in July 2017 compared with July 2016, with manufacturing providing the largest boost with an increase of 1.9 per cent, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Total production was estimated to have increased by 0.2 oer cebt compared with June 2017, due mainly to a rise of 0.5 per cent in manufacturing.

However, there was a 1.2 per cent fall in construction in the three months to July, with a fall of 0.9 per cent between June and July, the data showed.

This helped created a muted reaction from the pound to the data, along with information that the UK trade deficit widened in July.