- GBP/USD climbed above 1.2600 in the European session on Wednesday.
- The pair closed above the 200-day SMA on Tuesday.
- BoE’s Breeden said that she is less concerned that rates might need to be tightened further.
GBP/USD benefited from the improving risk mood on Tuesday and gained 0.5%, erasing a large portion of Monday’s losses in the process. Early Wednesday, the pair trades marginally higher on the day above 1.2600.
The downward correction seen in the US Treasury bond yields caused the US Dollar (USD) to weaken against its major rivals on Tuesday. In the absence of high-tier data releases, investors will continue to pay close attention to the action in bond markets.
Later in the American session, the US Treasury will hold a 10-year note auction. In the latest auction, the high-yield was 4.02%, down from 4.29% in the previous auction. In case the high-yield settles below 4% on Wednesday, the USD could have a hard time finding demand.
Pound Sterling price today
The table below shows the percentage change of Pound Sterling (GBP) against listed major currencies today. Pound Sterling was the strongest against the Swiss Franc.
| USD | EUR | GBP | CAD | AUD | JPY | NZD | CHF | |
| USD | -0.04% | -0.14% | -0.08% | 0.08% | 0.14% | -0.04% | 0.21% | |
| EUR | 0.03% | -0.09% | -0.02% | 0.13% | 0.20% | 0.03% | 0.26% | |
| GBP | 0.12% | 0.07% | 0.04% | 0.24% | 0.26% | 0.08% | 0.35% | |
| CAD | 0.08% | 0.02% | -0.05% | 0.15% | 0.22% | 0.04% | 0.26% | |
| AUD | -0.07% | -0.12% | -0.20% | -0.14% | 0.06% | -0.11% | 0.14% | |
| JPY | -0.15% | -0.19% | -0.26% | -0.23% | -0.08% | -0.21% | 0.05% | |
| NZD | 0.03% | -0.03% | -0.09% | -0.04% | 0.12% | 0.18% | 0.23% | |
| CHF | -0.23% | -0.26% | -0.35% | -0.29% | -0.11% | -0.06% | -0.24% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Euro from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent EUR (base)/JPY (quote).
Meanwhile, Bank of England (BoE) Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden said on Wednesday that she is less concerned about tightening the bank rate further, adding that her focus has shifted to thinking about how long rates need to remain at their current level. These comments failed to trigger a noticeable reaction in GBP/USD.
Market participants will keep an eye on risk perception mid-week. According to latest news, Qatar, acting as a mediator, said that Hamas had given a “generally positive” response to a proposed truce deal with Israel. Although it’s too early to say whether there will be further progress in peace talks, a de-escalation of the conflict in the Middle East could attract risk flows and help GBP/USD stretch higher.
GBP/USD Technical Analysis
The Relative Strength Index (RSI) indicator on the 4-hour chart rose slightly above 50 early Wednesday. More importantly, GBP/USD closed above the 200-day Simple Moving Average (SMA), currently located at 1.2560, on Tuesday.
On the upside, 1.2650 (Fibonacci 23.6% retracement of the latest uptrend) aligns as immediate resistance before 1.2680 (20-day SMA, 50-day SMA) and 1.2700 (psychological level, 200-period SMA on the 4-hour chart).
1.2600 (static level, psychological level) could be seen as interim support before 1.2560 (200-day SMA). A daily close below the latter could attract technical sellers and open the door for another leg lower toward 1.2540 (Fibonacci 38.2% retracement) and 1.2500 (psychological level, static level).
