European session review: GBP continues to appreciate, CNH and AUD remain under pressure

GBP appreciated against other major currencies on Friday for a second straight day, backed by the latest decision of the Bank of England (BoE) to keep its interest rate unchanged. The Bank also noted the signs of a pick-up in the UK's economy after December's election, which weakened the case for immediate action. 

EUR traded little changed against its major rivals after the release of the preliminary data on Eurozone's GDP and inflation, which showed that the economy grew less than expected in the final quarter of 2019 and core inflation decelerated in the first month of 2020. A flash estimate published by Eurostat revealed that Eurozone's seasonally adjusted GDP rose by 0.1 percent q/q and 1.0 percent y/y in the fourth quarter of 2019, while economists had forecast gains of 0.2 percent q/q and 1.1 percent y/y. In the third quarter of 2019, Eurozone's GDP grew by 0.3 percent q/q and 1.2 percent y/y. In a separate report, Eurostat said Eurozone's annual inflation is expected to be 1.4 percent in January 2020, up from 1.3 percent in December 2019. Meanwhile, the core inflation is estimated to drop to 1.1 percent in the reported month from 1.3 percent in the previous month. Economists had forecast headline inflation at 1.4 percent and core inflation at 1.2 percent. 

Elsewhere, CNH and AUD weakened amid lingering fears about the spread of the coronavirus in China.