Pound Drops On Ideas BOE May Reduce Rates This Week

The pound fell against the dollar Monday amid speculation the Bank of England will cut interest rates this week to bolster an economy in recession.

In a bizarre twist, at the same time the British currency rose to the highest level in seven months against the euro after BNP Paribas SA agreed to take control of Fortis in Belgium and Luxembourg for 14.5 billion euros ($19.7 billion) and the German government, banks and insurers agreed on a 50 billion-euro rescue for Hypo Real Estate Holding AG after an earlier bailout faltered.

At 9.45am BST the pound was $1.7575 and 77.36 pence against the euro.

Last week the pound dropped 4 percent against the dollar, the most since October 1992.

The BOE's MPC will likely cut interest rates by a quarter when they meet later this week according to analysts.