Investing.com - The pound held steady against the U.S. dollar on Friday, as the Bank of England's monetary policy decision on Thursday continued to weigh mildly on sterling, while investors remained cautious with the greenback ahead of a string of U.S. data due later in the day.
GBP/USD hit 1.5132 during European morning trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.5153.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.5075, the low of December 4 and resistance at 1.5240, the high of November 17.
Sterling weakened after dovish Bank of England meeting minutes on Thursday indicated that interest rates are likely to remain on hold at record lows for longer.
The Monetary Policy Committee voted eight-to-one to keep rates on hold at 0.5%. Ian McCafferty, one of four external members on the nine-person MPC, voted to increase rates to 0.75%.
Meanwhile, market participants eyed upcoming U.S. reports on retail sales, producer prices and consumer sentiment due later in the day, for further indications on the strength of the economy.
Demand for the dollar continued to be underpinned by expectations that the Fed is on track to raise interest rates for the first time since 2006 at its upcoming meeting on December 15-16.
Higher interest rates would make the dollar more attractive to yield-seeking investors.
Sterling was lower against the euro, with EUR/GBP rising 0.32% to 0.7240.