GBP/USD hammered down to mid-1.2100s in reaction to latest Brexit headlines

Haresh Menghani FXStreet

The GBP/USD pair lost over 100-pips during the early European session on Wednesday and extended its sharp intraday pullback farther below the 1.2200 round figure mark.

The British Pound witnessed some aggressive selling on news reports that the UK government has already initiated plans to delay parliamentary proceedings for about five weeks - extending the recess period to 14 October, paralyzing any attempt by the opposition parties to preemptively block a no-deal Brexit by legislation.

Apart from the latest Brexit-related headlines, the pair was further pressurized by a modest pickup in the US Dollar demand. Despite deepening of the US yield curve inversion, the greenback remained supported by the US President Donald Trump's softer tone against China on Tuesday and collaborated to the pair's heavily offered tone.

Meanwhile, possibilities of some short-term trading stops being triggered on a sustained break below the 1.2200 handle further aggravated the intraday bearish pressure. Hence, a follow-through weakness, led by some fresh technical selling and amid absent relevant market-moving economic releases, now looks a distinct possibility.

Technical levels to watch

GBP/USD

Overview
Today last price	1.2228
Today Daily Change	-0.0062
Today Daily Change %	-0.50
Today daily open	1.229

Trends
Daily SMA20	1.2148
Daily SMA50	1.2381
Daily SMA100	1.2613
Daily SMA200	1.2774

Levels
Previous Daily High	1.231
Previous Daily Low	1.2209
Previous Weekly High	1.2294
Previous Weekly Low	1.2064
Previous Monthly High	1.2706
Previous Monthly Low	1.2119
Daily Fibonacci 38.2%	1.2271
Daily Fibonacci 61.8%	1.2248
Daily Pivot Point S1	1.2229
Daily Pivot Point S2	1.2169
Daily Pivot Point S3	1.2128
Daily Pivot Point R1	1.233
Daily Pivot Point R2	1.2371
Daily Pivot Point R3	1.2431

Author

Haresh Menghani

FXStreet

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

EUR/USD looks mildly offered below 1.1750

EUR/USD comes under some mild selling pressure on Friday, partially fading Thursday’s strong pullback and revisiting the 1.1740 region on the back of a humble recovery in the US Dollar. Later in the day, investors’ attention will be on the release of US flash PMIs for the month of January.

GBP/USD flirts with two-week tops around 1.3530

GBP/USD extends its weekly firm performance and challenges the area of two-week peaks around 1.3530 on the back of a tepid bounce in the Greenback. Positive results from UK Retail Sales and preliminary PMIs appear to reinforce Cable's solid gains so far on Friday.

Gold shifts its focus to $5,000

Gold prices hit a record high near $4,970 per troy ounce earlier on Friday, leaving the door wide open to a potential test of the key $5,000 barrier. The Greenback’s inconclusive price action and shrinking US Treasury yields across the curve add to the yellow metal’s rally so far on Friday.

Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP face elevated downside risk amid weak technical setups

Bitcoin is struggling to stay above support at $89,000 at the time of writing, as headwinds intensify across the cryptocurrency market on Friday. Ethereum and Ripple are facing low retail and institutional demand, while bearish indicators continue to flash subtle signals that losses may extend further.

Week ahead – Fed and BoC meet amid geopolitical upheaval and Trump’s Fed pick

Fed to likely go on pause after three straight cuts. BoC is also expected to stand pat. But will Trump steal the limelight by revealing his Fed chair nomination?

Bitcoin slips below $90,000 as Trump's tariffs swing, ETF outflows pressure price

Bitcoin price struggles below $90,000 on Friday, correcting nearly 5% so far this week. Trump’s Davos speech on Wednesday, backing away from imposing further tariffs on the EU, triggered market volatility and risk-on mood.