UK data set to give the green light on a May rate hike

There's now just under a month until the Bank of England’s next meeting and a rate hike looks increasingly like a done deal. Signs of rising wage growth combined with recent Brexit progress now means markets have a rate rise in May virtually priced in - and none of the four BoE speakers last week made any attempts to rein in these expectations.

A raft of UK data due next week could be the final test ahead of next month’s meeting, but we suspect most policymakers have probably more-or-less made up their minds. Here’s what we expect.