Pound Sterling Price News and Forecast: GBP/USD faces challenges as the US Dollar strengthens

FXStreet Team FXStreet

GBP/USD struggles near 1.2300 due to differing policy stances between central banks

GBP/USD remains subdued for the second successive session, trading around 1.2320 during the Asian hours on Thursday. The pair faces challenges as the US Dollar (USD) received support as President Donald Trump issued a memorandum instructing federal agencies to investigate and address ongoing trade deficits.

The Greenback could further appreciate as traders expect the US Federal Reserve (Fed) to keep its benchmark overnight rate steady in the 4.25%-4.50% range at its January meeting. Moreover, Trump’s policies could drive inflationary pressures, potentially limiting the Fed to just one more rate cut. Read more...

GBP/USD eases back as markets tiptoe through the midweek

GBP/USD softened on Wednesday, easing back around one-fifth of one percent as markets await a decisive trigger to tilt risk appetite one way or another. Markets are hunkering down during a slow midweek gap between key data releases, and Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) figures are the light at the end of this week’s tunnel.

With Thursday slated to be a low-tier release day, Cable traders will be pivoting to focus on Friday’s S&P Global PMI figures due on both sides of the Atlantic. Both UK and US PMI business activity survey results for January are expected to come in mixed this week, with the services components expected to tick down and manufacturing to recover, albeit slightly. PMI figures generally have a limited impact unless figures come in wildly out of sync with forecasts, but survey respondent rates tend to be on the low side, and the overall figures should be taken with a grain of salt. Read more...

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