|

GBP/USD clings to gains near multi-week tops, around mid-1.2400s post-US data

  • Reports that the EU is ready to grant another Brexit extension provided a fresh boost.
  • The USD held on the defensive despite rising US bond yields and remained supportive.
  • Friday's mixed US retail sales data failed to provide any meaningful impetus to the major.

The GBP/USD pair held on to its strong gains through the mid-European session and was now seen consolidating near the top end of its daily trading range near mid-1.2400s, or multi-week tops.

Brexit optimism continues to underpin GBP

The British Pound came back in the spotlight on the last trading day of the week after reports suggested that the European Union is prepared to grant another extension to the UK to prevent a no-deal Brexit. This added to the recent optimism, wherein the UK lawmakers passed a law to stop a no-deal Brexit and provided a fresh boost to the Sterling.
 
The pair finally broke out of its three-day-old trading range and took along some short-term trading stops being placed near the 1.2370-80 supply zone. This coupled with the prevailing US Dollar selling bias - despite a follow-through pickup in the US Treasury bond yields - further collaborated to the pair's up-move to the highest level since July 25.

Meanwhile, Friday's upbeat headline retails sales figures, showing a rise of 0.4% in August as compared to 0.2% expected, was largely negated by a slight disappointment from core retail sales figures. Moreover, the closely watched Retail Sales Control Group matched consensus estimates and did little to provide any respite to the greenback. 
 
Nevertheless, with Friday's strong up-move, the pair remains on track to end the week on a positive note and register second consecutive week of strong gains as market participants now start repositioning for next week's key event risk - the FOMC policy meeting on September 17-18.

Technical levels to watch

GBP/USD

Overview
Today last price1.2453
Today Daily Change0.0119
Today Daily Change %0.96
Today daily open1.2334
 
Trends
Daily SMA201.2228
Daily SMA501.228
Daily SMA1001.2521
Daily SMA2001.2743
Levels
Previous Daily High1.2368
Previous Daily Low1.2283
Previous Weekly High1.2354
Previous Weekly Low1.1958
Previous Monthly High1.231
Previous Monthly Low1.2015
Daily Fibonacci 38.2%1.2336
Daily Fibonacci 61.8%1.2316
Daily Pivot Point S11.2289
Daily Pivot Point S21.2244
Daily Pivot Point S31.2204
Daily Pivot Point R11.2373
Daily Pivot Point R21.2413
Daily Pivot Point R31.2458

Author

Haresh Menghani

Haresh Menghani is a detail-oriented professional with 10+ years of extensive experience in analysing the global financial markets.

More from Haresh Menghani
Share:

Editor's Picks

EUR/USD struggles below 1.1800 ahead of US data, Fedspeak

EUR/USD remains trapped in a tight range below 1.1800 in the European session on Tuesday. The pair struggles amid a modest US Dollar strength and an improvement in risk sentiment, even as US tariff uncertainty lingers. The focus now remains on the US data and Fedspeak. 

GBP/USD stays defensive below 1.3500 as USD firms up

GBP/USD stays on the back foot below 1.3500 in the European trading hours on Tuesday. The pair declines as the US Dollar rebounds from losses recorded over the previous two sessions. Traders will focus on the US weekly ADP Employment Change and Consumer Confidence data due later in the day, along with speeches from Federal Reserve officials.

Gold holds pullback below $5,200 amid USD uptick

Gold holds moderate losses below $5,200 in European trading on Tuesday, though it lacks follow-through selling. Following the previous day's knee-jerk fall in reaction to US President Donald Trump's new global tariffs and the subsequent bounce, the US Dollar attracts fresh buyers ahead of mid-tier data and Fedspeak. 

Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, and Pepe extend losses on bearish signals

Meme coins are facing renewed selling pressure amid fading broad risk-on sentiment so far this week, with Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, and Pepe extending their losses after recent corrections.

AI-scare trade and tariff uncertainty takes hold

It was quite a day, with AI-disruption fears and tariff uncertainty triggering a risk-off session. By now, it's nearly impossible to have missed the Supreme Court's 6-3 decision that struck down US President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs last Friday.

Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, and Pepe extend losses on bearish signals

Meme coins are facing renewed selling pressure amid fading broad risk-on sentiment so far this week, with Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, and Pepe extending their losses after recent corrections.