Pound Sterling Price News and Forecast: GBP/USD trades with mild gains near 1.3435 during Friday session.

GBP/USD strengthens above 1.3430 as traders weigh impact of US government shutdown

The GBP/USD pair posts modest gains around 1.3435 during the Asian trading hours on Friday. The US Dollar (USD) weakens against the Pound Sterling (GBP) as the US job market slows down and the government enters a shutdown. The US September Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report will not be published in light of the ongoing federal shutdown, while the ISM Services PMI, and the final S&P Global Services PMI should be released later on Friday. 

Signs of a weakening US job market support the case for more interest rate cuts by the Fed in the remainder of the year, which provides some support to the Greenback. According to the CME FedWatch tool, traders have almost fully priced in that the Fed will cut interest rates by 25 basis points (bps) to the 3.75%-4.00% range in the policy meeting later this month. Read more...

GBP/USD snaps winning streak but remains in consolidation

GBP/USD backslid on Thursday, snapping a four-session winning streak and tumbling back from a technical rejection at the 1.3500 handle. Cable is drifting back into medium-term consolidation from 1.3400 to 1.3500 and price action is holding stubbornly just below the 50-day Exponential Moving Average. Markets are taking an extended pause in momentum as investors weigh how long the US government’s federal shutdown will last, and what the economic impacts could be.

The UK side of the economic data docket is devoid of any meaningful releases on Friday, leaving investors to grapple with sentiment about missing the latest US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) labor figures. Investors are banking on the latest government shutdown having a limited impact on economic factors. Traders largely expect this closure to be short-lived, and overall market focus remains pinned firmly on Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rate cuts through the remainder of the calendar year. Read more...

GBP/USD sinks as US shutdown sparks risk aversion, US Dollar strengthens

GBP/USD dives during the North American session as the US government shutdown extends for the second straight day on Thursday, triggering a delay in economic data releases. Meanwhile, the US Dollar (USD) strengthens as traders assess the impact of the shutdown. The pair trades at 1.3424, down 0.38%, at the time of writing.

The mood of the financial markets changed and turned risk-averse as traders began to trade 'blindly' without crucial economic data from the US. In the meantime, the Challenger Job Cuts for September showed that companies announced plans to fire 54.064K people, less than August’s 85.979K. Andy Challenger, senior vice president at Challenger, Gray & Christmas, said, “Right now, we’re dealing with a stagnating labor market, cost increases, and a transformative new technology.” Read more...