Sterling briefly recovered against the US dollar to levels before Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng delivered the UK government’s “mini” Budget last Friday, as recent support measures helped bolster sentiment.
The pound rose as much as 0.8 per cent against the dollar to $1.1203 on Friday morning in Asia, erasing losses from a steep sell-off this week sparked by concerns over the £45bn debt-financed tax cutting package.
Analysts said the Bank of England’s announcement of a £65bn bond-buying programme, intended to help calm volatility in gilt markets, as well as a move by the Office for Budget Responsibility to bring up its assessment of economic forecasts underlying the tax cuts, had helped boost sentiment.