Investing.com - The pound traded lower against the dollar on Tuesday after investors shrugged off lackluster U.S. data and bet the Federal Reserve remains on track to hike interest rates sooner in 2015 than once expected.
In U.S. trading on Tuesday, GBP/USD was down 0.15% at 1.6218, up from a session low of 1.6167 and off a high of 1.6287.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.6160, the low from Sept. 16, and resistance at 1.6418, last Tuesday's high.
In the U.S. earlier, the Conference Board reported that its consumer confidence index fell to 86.0 this month from 93.4 in August, whose figure was revised up from a previously reported 92.4.
Analysts expected the index to decline to 92.5 in September.
A separate report showed that a Chicago-area purchasing managers' index fell to 60.5 this month from 64.3 in August. Analysts had expected the index to decline to 61.9 in September.
The dollar still enjoyed support due to expectations that the Fed is moving closer to hiking interest rates, as despite hiccups here and there, longer-term analysis of U.S. indicators points to an economy that is gaining steam.
Meanwhile in the U.K., the Office for National Statistics said that the revised gross domestic product expanded by 0.9% in the second quarter, beating expectations for 0.8% growth and up from a previous estimate of 0.7%.
Year-on-year, the U.K. economy expanded at a 3.2% rate in the second quarter, in line with expectations.
The numbers sent the pound firming against the dollar earlier though profit taking wiped out sterling's gains.
A separate report showed that the U.K. current account deficit widened to £23.1 billion in the last quarter from a revised deficit of £20.5 billion in the first three months of the year. Analysts had expected the current account deficit to narrow to £17.0 billion in the second quarter.
Earlier in the day, the Nationwide Building Society reported that U.K. house prices fell 0.2% this month, compared to expectations for an increase of 0.5%, after a 0.8% gain in August.
Elsewhere, sterling was up against the euro, with EUR/GBP down 0.33% at 0.7786, and up against the yen, with GBP/JPY up 0.02% at 177.87.
On Wednesday, the U.S. is to release the ADP report on private sector job creation, which leads the government’s nonfarm payrolls report by two days. Later in the session, the Institute of Supply Management is to release a report on manufacturing activity.
The U.K. is to publish data on manufacturing activity.