GBP/JPY: Mildly bid above 138.00 on Brexit hopes, covid vaccine news
|- GBP/JPY bulls probe November 17 high amid cautious optimism.
- S&P 500 Futures, Asia-Pacific stocks gain as traders ignore the Fed-Treasury tussle amid vaccine hopes, Brexit updates.
- UK Times suggest a deal is on the cards, The Telegraph cites anxiety despite 95% agreement.
- Japan closed for Thanksgiving Day, UK PMIs in the spotlight.
GBP/JPY wobbles around the intraday high near 138.25, up 0.17% on a day, amid Monday’s Asian trading. Even if the Japanese markets are off, the risk-on mood favors the pair to probe the one week high.
Among the positive catalysts, Brexit optimism and the UK’s intention to ease the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown measures, coupled with the vaccine hopes, gain major attention. Also supporting the mood could be hints of further stimulus from the Japanese Prime Minister (PM) Yoshihide Suga.
As the European Union (EU) and the UK reach close to the Brexit deadline latest improvements in the trade talks keep the GBP/JPY traders hopeful of a soft departure of the ex-neighbors. However, The Guardian quotes British Chancellor Rishi Sunak to mark the UK’s sticking points while The Telegraph suggests the bloc’s doubts over key issues like fisheries, governance and competition rules.
Elsewhere, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are up for receding virus-led activity restrictions before Christmas whereas news that Pfizer is up for the UK’s regulatory approval also favors the risk-on mood. Further, the US Food and Drug Administration’s go to the Regeneron’s covid antibody treatment offered additional positive for the risks. It should also be noted that Japan’s PM Suga recently said that he will introduce policies to strengthen the economic recovery.
Read: Coronavirus Update: UK, France set to ease restrictions, Germany braces for extension until Dec 20
That said, S&P 500 Futures and stocks in Asia-Pacific, ex-Japan, flash positive signals while the UK’s FTSE also marks 0.40% intraday gains by press time.
Read: S&P 500 Futures stretch recovery from one week low as vaccine expectations gain momentum
With the UK’s preliminary Manufacturing and Services PMIs for November occupying the economic calendar, traders are less likely to get disappointed from Japan’s off.
Technical analysis
GBP/JPY buyers’ ability to return from the October high, needless to mention about 100-day SMA, favor the odds of recalling the 139.00 threshold back to the chart.
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