The pound rose on Wednesday to remain on course for a third-straight weekly win against the dollar, shrugging off weaker-than-expected economic data ahead of the Bank of England meeting on Thursday. Services, the backbone of the UK economy, improved to a reading of 56.5 last month from 47.1 in June, though just missed economists' forecasts of 56.6. The data suggest the U.K. recovery accelerated in July, but that was partly driven by pent-up demand, which will soon fade, Pantheon Macroeconomics said, flagging job cuts and higher savings as economic headwinds to come. The pound's march higher comes just a day ahead of the Bank of England meeting. The U.K. central bank is expected to keep interest rates unchanged but will roll out its forecasts on a range of economic measures including inflation, GDP and unemployment. In recent weeks, investors have been debating when the BoE will cut rates below zero, but Thursday's meeting is unlikely to offer detailed insight.