Pound Sterling Price News and Forecast: GBP hits fresh two-month lows sub-1.3220

FXStreet Team FXStreet

British Pound hits fresh two-month lows sub-1.3220 as BoE stands pat on rates

The British Pound (GBP) remains on the defensive against the US Dollar (USD) on Thursday, with the GBP/USD pair hitting fresh two-month lows near 1.3200, following the Bank of England’s (BoE) decision to leave interest rates unchanged.

No surprises at June’s BoE monetary policy meeting. The Bank Rate remains steady at 3.75% as widely expected, with two policymakers calling for a rate hike, as Swati Dhingra joined Huw Pill on the hawkish side. The bank also cut inflation forecasts for this year and upgraded underlying growth compared to April’s estimates. Read more...

GBP/USD awaits Bank of England meeting near April lows

The pound sterling barely reacted on Wednesday to weaker-than-expected UK inflation data. Investors preferred to take a wait-and-see approach ahead of today’s labour market statistics and the Bank of England meeting. However, GBP still had to respond to movements in the US dollar following the Federal Reserve meeting.

Inflation in May remained at 2.8% y/y, while the market had expected it to accelerate to 3.0%. The weaker-than-forecast data revived the debate over whether the Bank of England will need to raise interest rates at all this year. Read more...

British Pound remains on the defensive as investors await BoE’s decision

The British Pound (GBP) trims losses against the US Dollar (USD) on Thursday, but remains near the two-month low hit on Wednesday. The upbeat UK employment figures have failed to boost the Pound's recovery, as investors are reluctant to place large GBP long positions ahead of the Bank of England monetary policy decision, due later in the day.

The UK Unemployment Rate declined unexpectedly to 4.9% in the three months to April, down from 5% in the previous period, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics on Thursday. Net employment increased by 100K in the mentioned period, down from the previous 148K increase, but above the 80K consensus. Read more...

Author

FXStreet Team

FXStreet

Composed of a group of economic journalists and FX experts, the FXStreet content team produces and oversees all content published on FXStreet. It provides a purely journalistic approach to the Forex market.

AUD/USD sticks to positive bias above 0.7100; lacks bullish conviction

AUD/USD trades with a positive bias for the second straight day, holding above 0.7100 in the Asian session on Friday as softer US bond yields keep US Dollar bulls on the back foot. Furthermore, hawkish RBA Governor Bullock's comments boost rate hike bets and support the Aussie. However, the Fed's hawkish outlook, along with geopolitical uncertainties, limits USD losses and caps the pair.

USD/JPY approaches 158.00 as Japanese Yen resumes decline

USD/JPY is resuming its upside in the European session on Friday, refreshing two-week highs and nearing 158.00. The Japanese Yen extends losses, despite the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) expected rate hike to 1.25% and hawkish Governor Ueda's comments, as two surprise dissents against the rate hike weigh on it.

Gold keeps the bid tone in place; still below $4,400

Gold adds to the optimism seen in the second half of the week, trading with decent gains just below the $4,400 mark per troy ounce on Friday. The precious metal’s advance finds traction in declining crude oil prices and fresh selling pressure on the US Dollar.

Why altcoin season isn't coming back — and what stole its capital

If, after two years of being frozen in ice, Katara and Sokka woke you up to the crypto market, it would seem like 100 years have passed. With Bitcoin soaring to record highs just over a year ago, everyone expected a routine altcoin season, where investors take profits from the top crypto to chase higher returns in altcoins.

BoJ Recap: Not as hawkish as expected

The BoJ raised its short-term interest-rate target to 1.25% from 1.00% in a 7-2 vote, marking another step in the normalisation of monetary policy and widely matching what everyone has been expecting for weeks. Governor Kazuo Ueda said the policy phase had changed.

BoJ Recap: Not as hawkish as expected

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) raised its short-term interest-rate target to 1.25% from 1.00% in a 7-2 vote, marking another step in the normalisation of monetary policy and widely matching what everyone has been expecting for weeks.