Pound fights back against euro

THE pound traded near a six-month high against the euro on speculation the British economy is growing quickly enough to justify one more interest-rate increase this year by the Bank of England.

Property values in Britain rose for a third month in four and service industries unexpectedly accelerated in March, reports showed yesterday, contrasting with other recent data suggesting house-price growth and consumption may be cooling.

The bank meets today to decide whether to change the cost of borrowing and will announce its decision tomorrow.