Investing.com - The pound rose against the dollar on Wednesday after U.K. retail sales numbers beat expectations, while hawkish language out of the Bank of England also supported the pair.
In U.S. trading on Wednesday, GBP/USD was trading at 1.6870, up 0.19%, up from a session low of 1.6832 and off a high of 1.6921.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.6802, Tuesday's low, and resistance at 1.6997, the high from May 6.
The pound firmed official data showed that retail sales in the U.K. jumped 1.3% in April, more than double forecasts for a 0.5% increase, driven by higher food sales over the Easter holiday.
The pound received an additional boost after the minutes of the Bank of England’s May meeting noted that some Monetary Policy Committee members believe the decision on when to raise rates is "becoming more balanced," indicating that they are becoming more hawkish about the argument for hiking interest rates.
Meanwhile in the U.S., the dollar held steady as markets prepped for the release of the Federal Reserve's April policy meeting minutes later in the session.
The Fed has been tapering its asset-purchasing program this year amid signs that the recovery in the labor market is continuing, but has also reiterated that rates are likely to remain at record lows for a considerable time after the stimulus program ends.
On Tuesday, New York Fed President William Dudley reiterated the central bank’s dovish stance, saying the pace of rate hikes was likely to be “slow”.
Still, Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser said rates should rise sooner rather than later, which boosted the dollar on Wednesday.
"My own view is that, as we continue to move closer to our 2 percent inflation goal and the labor market improves, we must be prepared to adjust policy appropriately. That may well require us to begin raising interest rates sooner rather than later," Plosser said in prepared remarks of a speech he delivered in Washington Tuesday.
"On monetary policy, reducing the pace of asset purchases in measured steps is moving in the right direction, but the pace may leave us behind the curve if the economy continues to play out according to FOMC forecasts."
Elsewhere, sterling was up against the euro, with EUR/GBP down 0.48% at 0.8097, and up against the yen, with GBP/JPY up 0.34% at 171.21.
On Thursday, the U.K. is to publish revised data on first quarter economic growth, as well as reports on business investment and public sector borrowing. The U.K. is also to produce private sector data on industrial order expectations.
The U.S. is to release its weekly report on initial jobless claims and private sector data on existing home sales.