UK gilt yields fall to three-week lows on 15 October; pound hits one-month high
UK government bond (gilt) yields fell on 15 October, with the 10-year yield down to 5.31%. The pound rose to 1.3353 US dollars on 16 October, a one-month high. Bank Rate held at 3.75%.
A data update from FactIQ, written from UK official statistics (ONS, Bank of England, DEFRA, HMRC, DBT, and DfT) figures. What is FactIQ?
Key figures
- UK 10-year government bond (gilt) nominal par yield, 15 October 2026
- 5.31%down about 7bp from 5.38%2026-08-102026-10-15Yield from British Government Securities - 10 year Nominal Par Yield
- UK 20-year government bond (gilt) nominal par yield, 15 October 2026
- 5.64%down about 8bp from 5.72%2026-08-102026-10-15Yield from British Government Securities - 20 year Nominal Par Yield
- Pound to US dollar exchange rate, 16 October 2026
- 1.3353up about 0.75% from 1.32532026-08-112026-10-16Spot exchange rate - US $ into Sterling
- UK Bank Rate, policy interest rate
- 3.75%unchanged2026-08-112026-10-16Official Bank Rate
Long-term gilt yields fell the most on 15 October
Gilt yields show what the UK government pays to borrow over a given term. Falling yields mean investors are paying more for the bonds. Yields fell most at the long end on 15 October:- The 20-year nominal par yield fell about 8 basis points (bp, hundredths of a percentage point) to 5.64%, from 5.72%.
- The 10-year yield fell about 7bp to 5.31%, from 5.38%.
- The 5-year yield fell about 5bp to 4.92%.
The 10-year and 20-year closes were the lowest in the last three weeks of data. They were below the 25 September readings of 5.33% and 5.68%. That day, the Chancellor said he would 'stay the path' on cutting borrowing. Deputy Governor Breeden said firms were absorbing the energy shock rather than raising prices.
The pound gained against the dollar, the euro and the yen on 16 October
The pound rose about 0.75% against the US dollar, to 1.3353 from 1.3253, as the dollar weakened broadly. It also reached its highest levels in the past month against:- the euro: 1.1866, up from 1.1653 on 29 September
- the Japanese yen: 210.87
- a trade-weighted basket of currencies: the sterling effective exchange rate index reached 85.78, up from 84.75 at the end of September
Policy interest rates did not change
Bank Rate, the UK's main policy interest rate, stayed at 3.75%. The Sterling Overnight Index Average (SONIA), the average rate banks pay to borrow overnight, stayed at 3.73%. On 16 October, Governor Bailey said rate cuts are off the table because of the energy shock. He also said he sees little sign yet that inflation is feeding into wages and prices more broadly.Source: UK official statistics (ONS, Bank of England, DEFRA, HMRC, DBT, and DfT). See all UK data in FactIQ.
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