Sterling was on track for its fourth consecutive day of gains against the dollar on Wednesday as traders paused ahead of a survey of Britain’s construction sector.
However, the construction data came in worse than expected at 47.0 compared to an expected 51. The pound did not lose ground on the back of this result and continues to gain against the Dollar and Euro.
In January, Britain’s construction sector came close to contracting for the first time since September as uncertainty linked to Brexit caused new orders to dry up.
Expectations the Bank of England could raise interest rates as early as May has helped sterling outperform most major currencies this year.
Some investors remain sceptical about the odds of policy tightening because of lingering economic uncertainties.
Mainly the broad weakness of the dollar is linked to a trade dispute between the United States and China – that is keeping sterling above $1.40.