Investing.com - The pound held steady close to more than one-month highs against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, as the greenback remained under pressure after the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting imdicated that interest rates could stay on hold for a longer period.
GBP/USD hit 1.5466 during European morning trade, the session high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.5448.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.5339, Wednesday's low and resistance at 1.5586, the high of January 2.
Sentiment on the dollar remained vulnerable after the minutes of the Fed's January meeting showed that policymakers expressed concern that raising interest rates too soon could dampen the U.S. economic recovery.
The pound had strengthened on Wednesday after data showed that the U.K. unemployment rate fell to a six-year low 5.7% in the three months to December from 5.8% in the preceding three month-period and better than expectations for a reading of 5.8%.
The report also showed that the claimant count fell by 38,600 last month, compared to expectations for a decline of 25,000.
Meanwhile, investors continued to focus on developments in Greece, as Athens was expected to submit a request for an extension of its existing loan agreement with the euro zone, which differentiates from its bailout, later Thursday.
Sterling was flat against the euro, with EUR/GBP at 0.7383.
Later in the day, the U.K. was to release data on industrial orders. The U.S. was to publish a report on manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region and the weekly government figures on initial jobless claims.