Sterling hits 2-1/2-week high as poll eases Brexit fears

By Jemima Kelly

LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - Sterling hit a 2-1/2-week high against the euro on Wednesday after a poll showed the "In" campaign clearly in the lead ahead of the June 23 referendum on Britain's European Union membership.

Mixed data showing the employment rate in Britain at a record high but earnings excluding bonuses growing more slowly than expected nudged the pound down a little against a broadly stronger dollar, but it stayed up against the euro.

By 0900 GMT sterling was up 0.2 percent on the day against the single currency, at 78.11 pence per euro. It (Other OTC: ITGL - news) had earlier hit 77.94 pence, the pound's strongest since late April. Against the dollar, sterling was 0.4 percent down on the day at $1.4410.

"I didn't read the data as overwhelmingly positive. There wasn't a lot of upside - I'm not convinced the jobless rate can fall that much further, so we're probably pretty close to full employment," said BMO Capital Markets currency strategist Stephen Gallo.

"I think weaker aspects of the data carry a bit more weight now in the run-up to referendum," he added.

Worries that Britain could vote to leave the EU have weighed on the pound since late last year, driving an 8.5 percent fall in the past six months on a trade-weighted basis. Most economists reckon a Brexit would deal a blow to Britain's economy, and drive down the currency further.

The latest opinion poll, conducted by YouGov (LSE: YOU.L - news) for The Times newspaper, showed the "In" camp with a four-point lead at 44 percent. However, the paper said the lead was slightly boosted by a change in the polling firm's methodology.

The previous YouGov poll for The Times, published 10 days ago, had given the "In" camp a two-point lead.

Other polls in recent days have given mixed signals but most point towards a vote to remain in the EU. One, a telephone poll by polling firm ORB, gave the "In" camp a 15-point lead. ICM published two polls on Monday, one a phone survey which put "In" ahead and an online poll that showed "Out" in the lead.

Eikon readers can click cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=brexit for the latest news and analysis on the EU referendum.

"Referendum polls had been supporting the currency in recent days, however realisation around the fundamental cracks appearing in the underlying economy are starting to generate doubts," said Western Union's head of corporate treasury sales, Tobias Davis.

The pound's gains against the euro on Wednesday came despite a lower-than-expected monthly read on headline and underlying inflation on Tuesday, which added to the case for interest rates to stay on hold for the next year or more. (Editing by Toby Chopra)