UK gilt yields plunge ahead of Q2 GDP, June manufacturing production

The United Kingdom’s gilt yields plunged slightly during European trading hours Wednesday ahead of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter of this year, scheduled to be released on August 9 by 08:30GMT and the manufacturing production data for the month of June, due on the same day for further direction in the debt market.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year gilts, plunged 6-1/2 basis points to 0.449 percent, the 30-year yield slumped nearly 9 basis points to 1.103 percent and the yield on the short-term 2-year traded 2 basis points lower at 0.410 percent by 10:50GMT.

It should be a relatively quiet day for economic news from the UK with just the July Halifax house price survey – which in recent months has provided an unreliable guide to the official data, with a stronger headline rate of price growth (a remarkable 5.7 percent 3m/y in June) probably reflecting the geographical skew of the sample – due for release, Daiwa Capital Markets reported.

Meanwhile, the FTSE 100 traded nearly 1 percent up at 7,231.05 by 10:55GMT.