Sterling gained to one-week highs against the dollar on Thursday, rising in tandem with the euro but also helped by recent signals from the Bank of England (BoE) that UK rate hikes remained on the cards.
The pound's rise as high as $1.8478 by late European trade brought it within a cent of 11-year highs hit on January 12 and was helped by the BoE's hawkish tone in the minutes of its latest policy meeting, released on Wednesday.
Dealers said Friday's December retail sales figures and preliminary fourth quarter gross domestic product (GDP) could prove key in deciding whether the next rate hike would come in February, which is when some analysts expect a rise.
"With sterling, the dollar is an overwhelming focus over the medium term but we still do have this focus on interest rate expectations - specifically whether or not the BoE will be hiking interest rates," said Jane Foley, currency strategist at Barclays Capital.
"This of course really pulls our attention now to tomorrow's retail sales and GDP data."
At 1530 GMT, the pound was off the day's highs but still up two thirds of a percent on the session at $1.8425, with the euro also up against the greenback. The pound's most recent 11-year high against the dollar was at $1.8577.
Against the euro, sterling was flat on the day at 68.92 pence.
Analysts expect Friday's data to show a 0.8 percent quarterly rise in GDP and a 2.3 percent annual expansion. December retail sales are expected to rise 0.4 percent month-on-month and 3.0 percent on the year.