Forex - GBP/USD at multi-month low as risk appetite crumbles

Published 09/22/2011, 04:23 AM
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GBP/JPY
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Investing.com – The pound fell to an eight-and-a-half month low against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, as risk appetite crumbled after the Federal Reserve warned about “significant” risks facing the U.S. economy and announced fresh measures to prop up growth.

GBP/USD hit 1.5439 during early European trade, the pair’s lowest since January 7; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.5459, shedding 0.25%.

Cable was likely to find support at 1.5349, the low of December 29 and resistance at 1.5518, the day’s high.

At the conclusion of its policy meeting on Wednesday the Fed warned that the U.S. faces a grim economic outlook.

“There are significant downside risks to the economic outlook, including strains in global financial markets,” the Fed said.

The central bank unveiled a plan to sell USD400 billion of short-term Treasury bonds to buy the same amount of longer-term U.S. government debt, in an attempt to boost the economy by pushing down long-term interest rates, a move dubbed “Operation Twist.”

The announcement came after the minutes of the Bank of England’s September policy meeting indicated that the bank is leaning towards more monetary easing, possibly as early as next month.

Meanwhile, the pound tumbled to an all-time low against the yen, with GBP/JPY shedding 0.37% to hit 118.06.

Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish its weekly report on initial jobless claims.

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