Pound Sterling Price News and Forecast: GBP/USD drifts higher to around 1.3290 on Thursday

Pound Sterling inches higher ahead of BoE rate decision

The GBP/USD pair gathers strength near 1.3290 during the early European trading hours on Thursday. However, the potential upside for the major pair might be limited amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and the hawkish tone from the US Federal Reserve (Fed). All eyes will be on the UK employment report and the Bank of England (BoE) interest rate decision on Thursday. 

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has pushed the WTI price to near $100 a barrel, strengthening the US Dollar as a safe-haven currency. Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that Iran and Israel traded strikes on key energy facilities in the Middle East. The strike followed a warning from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) hours earlier that several energy sites in Gulf countries would be considered “legitimate targets” after Israel attacked South Pars gas field facilities. Read more...

GBP/USD slides below 1.3300 ahead of Thursday's BoE decision

GBP/USD fell around 0.7% on Wednesday, sliding below the 1.3300 handle as Cable continues to grapple with the technical level. The sell-off extends the pullback from the late-January high near 1.3870, with the pair now trading below both of its key daily moving averages. Wednesday's decisive bearish candle suggests the indecisive price action of the past two weeks has resolved to the downside.

The Federal Reserve (Fed) held rates at 3.50% to 3.75% and stuck with its projection of one cut in 2026, but Chair Jerome Powell's press conference pushed the US Dollar higher across the board. Powell noted that inflation progress has been slower than the central bank had hoped, while the updated Summary of Economic Projections raised the 2026 core inflation forecast to 2.7% from 2.5% in December. Wednesday's Producer Price Index (PPI) reinforced the hawkish tone, with headline PPI jumping 0.7% month-on-month (MoM) against a 0.3% consensus. Read more...

GBP/JPY Price Forecast: Slumps as Yen gains on risk aversion

The GBP/JPY register losses of 0.20& on Wednesday as investors wait for the Bank of Japan monetary policy decision on Thursday. Risk aversion due to an escalation of the Middle East conflict boosted the haven appeal of the Japanese Yen, trimming earlier losses that had driven the pair to a daily high of 212.73. At the time of writing, the cross-pair trades at 211.82.

After testing yearly highs of 215.00, the GBP/JPY dipped to a yearly low near 207.00 before consolidating around the 210.00-214.00 area over the last four days. As of writing, the cross sits above the 50- and 20-day Simple Moving Averages (SMAs), indicating bullish momentum, as shown by the Relative Strength Index (RSI) standing above its 50-neutral level. Read more...