GBP/USD holds below the 1.2700 mark ahead of Fed's Powell testimony


  • GBP/USD loses ground near 1.2695 amid renewed USD demand. 
  • The US Services PMI fell to 52.6 in February, worse than expected. 
  • Markets expect the Bank of England (BoE) to start cutting interest rates in August. 
  • Investors await the UK S&P Global Construction PMI and Fed Jerome Powell’s testimony on Wednesday. 

The GBP/USD pair holds below the 1.2700 mark during the early Asian session on Wednesday. The downtick of the pair is backed by the renewed US Dollar (USD). Later on Wednesday, the UK S&P Global Construction PMI and the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) Jerome Powell’s testimony will be in the spotlight. GBP/USD currently trades near 1.2695, losing 0.08% on the day. 

Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said on Monday that he expects the first interest rate cut from the Fed, scheduled for the third quarter, will be followed by a pause in the subsequent meeting to evaluate the impact of the policy adjustment on the economy. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, financial markets have priced in 3.0% odds of a 25 basis point (bps) rate cut at the FOMC meeting in March. 

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) survey on Tuesday reported that US Services PMI slipped to 52.6 in February from 53.4 in January. The figures came in weaker than the expectation of 53.0.

On the other hand, the UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt spoke at the Spring budget and cut national insurance by 2p in his budget on Wednesday. Apart from this, investors anticipate the Bank of England (BoE) to start cutting interest rates in August when inflation is expected to return to the 2% target before increasing again.

Later on Wednesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell is set to speak before Congress for his semiannual testimony on Wednesday. The US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) on Friday will be the highlight for this week, which is forecast to add 200,000 jobs in February. Traders will take cues from the events and find trading opportunities around the GBP/USD pair. 

 

GBP/USD

Overview
Today last price 1.2698
Today Daily Change -0.0007
Today Daily Change % -0.06
Today daily open 1.2705
 
Trends
Daily SMA20 1.2637
Daily SMA50 1.2674
Daily SMA100 1.2564
Daily SMA200 1.258
 
Levels
Previous Daily High 1.2735
Previous Daily Low 1.2671
Previous Weekly High 1.27
Previous Weekly Low 1.26
Previous Monthly High 1.2773
Previous Monthly Low 1.2518
Daily Fibonacci 38.2% 1.2711
Daily Fibonacci 61.8% 1.2696
Daily Pivot Point S1 1.2673
Daily Pivot Point S2 1.264
Daily Pivot Point S3 1.2609
Daily Pivot Point R1 1.2736
Daily Pivot Point R2 1.2767
Daily Pivot Point R3 1.28

 

 

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