UK jobs preview: What to expect of GBP/USD?

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

The GBP/USD pair rebounds sharply higher post-European open, extended early gains, with the sentiment underpinned by higher commodities’ prices and European equities.

All eyes now remain on the UK labour market report from the Office for National Statistics due for release at 8.30GMT this Wednesday.

Wages to tick down in April

The UK employment data is expected to show the jobless claims change should tick higher to 0 from -2,400 previously. While the unemployment rate in April is expected to remain unchanged at 5.1%.

Wages are expected to continue growing at a notably subdued pace, with the total weekly earnings rising at the quarterly rate of just 1.6% in the three months to April, which would be down from 2% measured in March. Earnings excluding bonuses are estimated to have decelerated to 2% from 2.1%.

The major is likely to get little affected by the UK data and any surprise in the data is expected to have limited reaction on the pound, as the upcoming Fed decision will be the main market moving event for today, while Brexit fears loom.

GBP/USD: Key technical levels to watch on UK data

At 1.4167, the pair has an immediate resistance at 1.4200/01 (round number/ 5-DMA), above which 1.4271/81 (daily R2/ 1h 100-SMA) would be tested. On the flip side, support is seen at 1.4100/1.4091 (round figure/ multi-week low) below that at 1.4067 (daily S1).

Author

Dhwani Mehta

FXStreet

Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.

EUR/USD slumps below 1.1750 as USD benefits from risk-aversion

EUR/USD comes under renewed bearish pressure in the European session and trades below 1.1750 following a recovery attempt earlier in the day. The US Dollar gathers strength and weighs on the pair as investors seek refuge in the wake of Israel and the United States' joint attack on Iran.

GBP/USD targets 1.3500 barrier near moving averages

GBP/USD rebounds from the daily losses, trading around 1.3450 during the Asian hours on Monday. The technical analysis of the daily chart indicates an ongoing bearish bias, as the pair trades within a descending channel pattern.

Gold surges on safe-haven demand, tests $5,400

Gold benefits from intense risk-aversion on Monday and climbs to the $5,400 region, setting a fresh monthly-high in the process. Tensions in the Middle East remain high as Israel and Hezbollah continue to exchange strikes following the US-Israel joint attack on Iran over the weekend.

Bitcoin on brink of breakdown amid US-Iran war

Bitcoin (BTC) remains under pressure near the key support level of $65,700. Trading at $66,400 at the time of writing on Monday, a breakdown below this critical level would suggest a deeper correction ahead.

The week ahead: Conflict in the Middle East jolts markets

Events in the Middle East are obviously dominating financial markets this morning. The Brent crude oil price is extending gains and is higher by more than 8%, stock futures are pointing lower and the gold price is higher by more than 2%.

Pi Network Price Forecast: Core team offloads supply, weighing on PI recovery

Pi Network hovers below $0.1700, broadly steady at press time on Monday, attempting a recovery after a 2% loss the previous day. Sunday’s decline aligned with nearly 49 million PI tokens offloaded by the Pi Foundation, implying a spike in supply pressure that capped the prevailing four-day recovery.