GBPUSD Movement
For the 24 hours to 23:00 GMT, GBP traded flat against the USD and closed at 1.5690.
GBP came under pressure after claimant count in the UK climbed by 6,900 to 1.60 million in January. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 8.4% for the three months ended in December 2011.
To add to concerns, the Bank of England Governor, Mervyn King, stated that economic growth is likely to alternate between expansion and contraction in 2012 and has warned that the Euro-zone crisis remains the biggest threat to the UK economic recovery.
Meanwhile, in its quarterly inflation report, the Bank of England, stated that that the UK economy is on a slow and gradual path to recovery, guided by the right mix of budget and monetary policies. Headline inflation is likely to undershoot the 2.0% target in two years.
In the Asian session, at GMT0400, the pair is trading at 1.5678, with the GBP trading 0.07% lower from yesterday’s close.
GBP pares some of its losses this morning, after the Nationwide Building Society reported that consumer confidence in the UK rose to its highest level in January, since August.
The pair is expected to find support at 1.5649, and a fall through could take it to the next support level of 1.5619. The pair is expected to find its first resistance at 1.5722, and a rise through could take it to the next resistance level of 1.5766.
The currency pair is trading below its 20 Hr and 50 Hr moving averages.
