GBP traded little changed against its major rivals in the European session on Wednesday, erasing its earlier declines following a surprise Bank of England (BoE) rate cut in response to the coronavirus.

The BoE lowered its key lending rate by 50 basis points to 0.25%, the first unscheduled move since the global financial crisis of 2008, to contain the economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak.

In its emergency statement, the BoE also noted that "although the magnitude of the economic shock from COVID-19 is highly uncertain, activity is likely to weaken materially in the United Kingdom over the coming months".

As well as the rate cut, the UK's central bank said it would allow banks to release a special store of capital, so they could continue lending to households and businesses during the coronavirus epidemic.

Market partiсipants are also awaiting the UK's government to present its annual budget later today in Parliament (due shortly after 12:30 GMT). It is expected that the budget could include some coronavirus-focusing spending plans.