Pound rises as Bank of England officials hint of rate increases, but resouce stocks drive FTSE 100 higher

The British pound rose on Monday as two Bank of England officials dropped hints of a more hawkish policy over the weekend, leaving the FTSE to draw strength from resource stocks. The pound (GBPUSD) rose 0.2% to $1.3665 after Michael Saunders, a member of the central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee, said markets weren’t wrong in betting on higher interest rates, with inflation creeping up above 4%. Also on Saturday, Bank of England Gov. Andrew Bailey told the Yorkshire Telegraph that he was concerned over above-target inflation.