GBP/JPY breaks its two days of losses, trading around 197.90 during the European session on Monday. The Japanese Yen (JPY) faces challenges due to uncertainty surrounding the Bank of Japan’s (BoJ) interest rate hikes in the future. The BoJ Summary of Opinions for the October meeting highlighted divisions among policymakers regarding the timing of future interest rate hikes.

Some members of the Bank of Japan expressed concerns about global economic uncertainties and rising market volatility, particularly around the Yen's depreciation. Still, the central bank has suggested it might increase its benchmark policy rate to 1% by the latter half of the 2025 fiscal year.

Liberal Democratic Party’s (LDP) Shigeru Ishiba has been re-elected as Japan's Prime Minister, receiving 221 out of 465 votes in the lower house of parliament. This follows last month’s election, in which Ishiba’s LDP, along with its coalition partner Komeito, lost their parliamentary majority.

The Bank of England (BoE) lowered interest rates by 25 basis points on Thursday. BoE Governor Andrew Bailey noted that, if the economy develops as anticipated, interest rates will continue to decrease gradually. However, Bailey stressed that monetary policy will remain tight until the risks of persistent inflationary pressures are reduced.

The Office for Budget Responsibility recently revised its inflation forecast for 2025, raising it to an average of 2.6%, up from the 1.5% estimate in March. This adjustment is closely aligned with the BoE’s August projections, which forecast inflation at 2.4% in one year, 1.7% in two years, and 1.5% in three years.

More By This Author: