Euro Slides Against Pound as Germany's Industrial Output Surprises Markets

The euro (EUR) traded lower against the British pound (GBP) on Monday morning in Europe, with the EUR/GBP cross losing ground to around 0.8585.

This move comes after Germany's Industrial Production fell unexpectedly in July by 1.1% month-over-month (MoM), compared to a revised 0% growth and market expectations of 0.3%. On an annual basis, the industrial sector activity declined by 1.6% year-over-year (YoY) in July.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is widely expected to raise its key interest rates by 25 basis points (bps) at its upcoming monetary policy meeting on Thursday, with Andrew Kenningham, chief Europe economist at Capital Economics, predicting a rate hike from 2.25% to 2.5%.