Investing.com - The pound edged higher against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, after the release of higher than expected house price data from the U.K., altough gains were capped ahead of the Bank of England's monthly policy statement due later in the day.
GBP/USD hit 1.6762 during European morning trade, the session high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.6759, edging up 0.13%.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.6693, the low of May 29 and resistance at 1.6816, the high of May 28.
In a report, the Halifax Bank of Scotland said that U.K. house prices rose by 3.9% last month, exceeding expectations for a 0.7% gain, after a 0.3% fall in April, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated 0.2% slip.
Meanwhile, the dollar remained supported after the Institute of Supply Management on Wednesday said its non-manufacturing index rose to a nine-month high of 56.3 in May, from a reading of 55.2 the previous month, compared to expectations for a rise to 55.5.
However, market participants awaited Friday's report on U.S. nonfarm payrolls for further indications on the strength of the U.S. job market after a data on Wednesday showed that private sector jobs rose less than expected last month.
Payroll processing firm ADP said non-farm private employment rose by 179,000 in May, below expectations for an increase of 210,000. April's figure was revised down to a gain of 215,000 from a previously reported increase of 220,000.
Sterling was little changed against the euro, with EUR/GBP dipping 0.03% to 0.8121.
In the euro zone, data earlier showed that German factory orders rose 3.1% in April, beating expectations for a 1.3% increase, after a 2.8% decline the previous month.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish the weekly report on initial jobless claims.