UK gilts lose ground on hopes of rise in February manufacturing production; BoE Governor Carney’s speech eyed

The UK gilts lost ground Monday as investors hope to see a rise in the country’s manufacturing production for the month of February, scheduled to be released on April 11 by 08:30GMT. Also, the Bank of England (BoE) Governor Mark Carney’s speech, due later in the week will add direction to the debt market.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year gilts, jumped nearly 2 basis points to 1.41 percent, the super-long 30-year bond yields climbed 1 basis point to 1.78 percent and the yield on the short-term 2-year traded 2-1/2 basis points higher at 0.88 percent by 10:35GMT.

Like in the euro area, February industrial production and trade figures will be most notable among the new UK economic data releases in the coming week. They are due on Wednesday alongside the latest construction output figures.

With business sentiment having remained elevated that month, the figures are expected to be quite firm, showing an increase in manufacturing production and construction output and a narrowing in the trade deficit, Daiwa Capital Markets reported in its latest report.

Away from that, the latest BRC Retail Sales Monitor, out tomorrow, will also be of interest – it is likely to give an indication to what extent retail spending was disrupted by bad weather in March – while the RICS Residential Market and BoE Credit Conditions surveys will be worth watching too.

Meanwhile, the FTSE 100 rose 0.02 percent to trade at 7,185.44 by 10:40 GMT, while at 10:00GMT, the FxWirePro's Hourly Pound Strength Index remained neutral at 55.86 (a reading above +75 indicates a bullish trend, while that below -75 a bearish trend). For more details, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex

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