The pound has stabilized on Friday, as GBP/USD trades at the 1.54 line in the European session. On the release front, the US will issue its second estimate of GDP for Q4, with a forecast of 2.1%. This is lower than the initial estimate of 2.6% in January. We’ll also get a look at Revised UoM Consumer Sentiment and Pending Home Sales. There are no UK releases on Friday.
Thursday’s US inflation and job numbers were not impressive. US inflation indicators continue to struggle. CPI posted a third straight decline, coming in at -0.7%. This was very close to the forecast of -0.6%. Core CPI improved to 0.2%, edging above the estimate of 0.1%. On the employment front, there was disappointing news, as Unemployment Claims jumped to a 6-week high, coming in at 313 thousand. This was much higher than the estimate of 288 thousand.
Janet Yellen testified before Congressional committees on Tuesday and Wednesday, saying that the Fed was “unlikely” to raise interest rates in the next few months, given current economic conditions. Her remarks seemed aimed at quelling rising speculation about a rate hike sometime in mid-2015, which has helped boost the US dollar’s performance against its major rivals. Yellen noted that the continuing economic growth should lead to unemployment continuing to fall. Recent US data has been mixed, but employment numbers have generally been solid.
GBP/USD 1.5402 H: 1.5448 L: 1.5384
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