Investing.com – The pound was trading close to an eight-month low against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, ahead of the conclusion of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting and after the release of the minutes of the Bank of England’s September meeting.
GBP/USD hit 1.5614 during European afternoon trade, the pair’s lowest since January 15; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.5636, shedding 0.62%.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.5582, the low of January 15 and resistance at 1.5746, Monday’s high.
The Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee was to conclude its two-day policy meeting later in the day. Following the meeting, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke was expected to announce plans to replace short-term Treasuries with long-term bonds, in a move known as Operation Twist.
In the U.K., the minutes of the BoE’s most recent meeting showed that most policymakers believed the economic conditions seen in the past month had strengthened the case for an "immediate" return to the policy of quantitative easing.
"For some members, a continuation of the conditions seen over the past month would probably be sufficient to justify an expansion of the asset purchase program at a subsequent meeting," the minutes said.
The pound was also down against the euro, with EUR/GBP rising 0.24% to hit 0.8728.
Also Wednesday, official data showed that U.K. public sector net borrowing rose more-than-expected in August, climbing to GBP13.2 billion, above expectations for an increase to GBP11.4 billion.
GBP/USD hit 1.5614 during European afternoon trade, the pair’s lowest since January 15; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.5636, shedding 0.62%.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.5582, the low of January 15 and resistance at 1.5746, Monday’s high.
The Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee was to conclude its two-day policy meeting later in the day. Following the meeting, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke was expected to announce plans to replace short-term Treasuries with long-term bonds, in a move known as Operation Twist.
In the U.K., the minutes of the BoE’s most recent meeting showed that most policymakers believed the economic conditions seen in the past month had strengthened the case for an "immediate" return to the policy of quantitative easing.
"For some members, a continuation of the conditions seen over the past month would probably be sufficient to justify an expansion of the asset purchase program at a subsequent meeting," the minutes said.
The pound was also down against the euro, with EUR/GBP rising 0.24% to hit 0.8728.
Also Wednesday, official data showed that U.K. public sector net borrowing rose more-than-expected in August, climbing to GBP13.2 billion, above expectations for an increase to GBP11.4 billion.