Investing.com – Sterling edged higher against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, as the currency continued to be supported by expectations of a near-term rate increase by the Bank of England.
GBP/USD hit 1.5963 during European early afternoon trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.596, gaining 0.17%.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.5768, Wednesday’s low and resistance at 1.6016, Tuesday’s high.
Earlier, the pound slipped lower against the dollar after ratings agency Standard & Poor's cut Japan's sovereign debt rating by one notch to AA-.
However sterling found support after the minutes of the BoE’s January monetary policy meeting, released Wednesday, showed that the decision to leave rates unchanged was "finely balanced" for some members.
Meanwhile, sentiment on the dollar remained weaker after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 0.25% on Wednesday and said it would see its USD600 billion bond-purchasing plan through to completion in June.
In its January rate statement the bank said,” Economic recovery is continuing, though at a rate that has been insufficient to bring about a significant improvement in labor market conditions".
The pound was also slightly higher against the euro, with EUR/GBP easing down 0.03% to hit 0.8607.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish official data on initial jobless claims, as well as reports on durable goods orders and pending home sales.
GBP/USD hit 1.5963 during European early afternoon trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.596, gaining 0.17%.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.5768, Wednesday’s low and resistance at 1.6016, Tuesday’s high.
Earlier, the pound slipped lower against the dollar after ratings agency Standard & Poor's cut Japan's sovereign debt rating by one notch to AA-.
However sterling found support after the minutes of the BoE’s January monetary policy meeting, released Wednesday, showed that the decision to leave rates unchanged was "finely balanced" for some members.
Meanwhile, sentiment on the dollar remained weaker after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 0.25% on Wednesday and said it would see its USD600 billion bond-purchasing plan through to completion in June.
In its January rate statement the bank said,” Economic recovery is continuing, though at a rate that has been insufficient to bring about a significant improvement in labor market conditions".
The pound was also slightly higher against the euro, with EUR/GBP easing down 0.03% to hit 0.8607.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish official data on initial jobless claims, as well as reports on durable goods orders and pending home sales.