Having held steady in trading yesterday, the pound has slipped back this morning as equity markets stumble

Sterling suffered early losses against the euro yesterday after a BoE member hinted that the QE programme should be extended, but the pound recovered to close the day on level footing.

• Adam Posen stated that the central bank should continue its quantitative easing programme as the financial system has yet to show signs of a sustained recovery.
  
• He added that he was unconcerned about the possibility of further monetary stimulus risking a rise in inflation.
  
• His comments appeared to eclipse positive house price data from property website Rightmove, which showed that asking prices for homes in England and Wales were up on an annual basis for the first time in more than a year in October.
  
• Posen’s dovish remarks contrast with those of fellow MPC member, Paul Fisher, who last week suggested that the BoE may be considering drawing its QE programme to a close.
  
• However, the UK currency rallied strongly in the afternoon, buoyed by surging equity markets, which took their lead from positive US corporate earnings.