London stocks closed higher on Wednesday thanks to a boost from precious metal miners, while hawkish comments by Bank of England Chief Economist Huw Pill eased bets on an interest rate cut in August.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed 0.7% higher, after logging its worst day in nearly a month on Tuesday.
Also capping gains for the dollar earners was a rise in the pound as BoE’s Pill focused on strong price pressures in the economy and the timing of a first interest rate cut was an “open question,” addressing a think tank in London.
Investors are now expecting roughly a 50% chance of an initial rate cut in August, down from 62% before Pill’s speech. The yield on Britain’s two-year gilt hit a session high of 4.125% post the speech.
On Monday, outgoing BoE Monetary Policy Committee member Jonathan Haskel said he was not yet ready to vote for rate cuts. Catherine Mann, another external MPC member, is due to speak at 1630…
