GBP/USD clings to modest recovery gains, 1.2700 mark back on sight post-UK data

   •  A modest USD pullback from two-year lows helped bounce of multi-month lows.
   •  The recovery got an additional boost following the release of UK retail sales data.
   •  Investors now await the UK PM May’s statement for hints on her departure date.

The GBP/USD pair held on to its mildly positive tone and is currently placed at the top end of its daily trading range, around the 1.2680 region post-UK monthly retail sales data.

With investors still digesting the recent Brexit-related UK political chaos, a modest US Dollar pullback on Thursday helped the pair to stage a modest rebound from the 1.2600 neighborhood and highly oversold conditions. 

The steady recovery extended through the early European session on Friday and got an additional boost from the UK macro data, showing that monthly retail sales remained flat in April as compared to a 0.3% decline expected.

On the other hand, core retail sales came in to show a contraction of 0.2% and the yearly growth rate eased to 5.2% from 6.7%, still better than consensus estimates pointing to a reading of -0.5% and 4.6% respectively.

It would now be interesting to see if the pair is able to capitalize on the positive move as investors now look forward to the UK PM Theresa May's statement for hints on her departure date amid disagreements on her revised Brexit deal.

Technical levels to watch