Investing.com - The pound was almost unchanged against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, hovering near six-week lows after mixed U.S. data as concerns the U.K. housing market could be losing some momentum continued to weigh on demand for sterling.
GBP/USD hit 1.6693 during U.S. morning trade, the session high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.6722, easing up 0.07%.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.6607, the low of April 8 and resistance at 1.6816, Wednesday's high.
In a report, the National Association of Realtors said its pending home sales index rose 0.4% last month, below expectations for a 1% gain. Pending home sales in March rose by 3.4%.
The data came after the Bureau of Economic Analysis said U.S. gross domestic product contracted 1.0% in the first quarter, after the preliminary estimate showed growth of 0.1%. Market expectations had been for a 0.5% contraction. It was the first decline in U.S. GDP since the first quarter of 2011.
However the report also indicated that economic activity has since rebounded. Consumer spending, which makes up more than two-thirds of economic activity, increased by 3.1%, up from the preliminary estimate of 3.0%.
Separately, the Department of Labor said the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week fell by 27,000 to 300,000, compared to expectations for a decline of 9,000.
Meanwhile, the pound remained under pressure after a report by the British Bankers' Association earlier in the week showed that banks approved the lowest number of mortgages in eight months in April.
The data added to indications that the U.K. housing market is starting to slow, prompting investors to trim back expectations for a rate hike by the Bank of England later this year.
Sterling was steady against the euro, with EUR/GBP inching up 0.07% to 0.8139.
Sentiment on the single currency remained vulnerable amid mounting expectations that the European Central Bank will ease monetary policy at its upcoming meeting next week, in order to safeguard the fragile recovery in the euro area.