GBP price, news and analysis:
- Very weak economic data from the US, with more expected, has led to some safe-haven buying of the US Dollar.
- That has prevented further gains in GBP/USD, although the uptrend in the pair could resume soon.
GBP/USD shrugs off recession fears
Trading in GBP/USD continues to be driven by movements in the US Dollar, which is attracting safe-haven buying after much worse than expected US economic data that revived fears of a deep US recession. Figures released Wednesday showed March retail sales down by a worse than expected 8.7% month/month while industrial production figures for the same month were down by an equally disappointing 5.4%. This session, markets are braced for another disastrous rise in weekly jobless claims of around five million.
That has put downward pressure on GBP/USD, which continues to edge back from its recent highs although there are few signs yet that the earlier uptrend is now reversing.
GBP/USD Price Chart, Hourly Timeframe (April 6-16, 2020)
Chart by IG (You can click on it for a larger image)
| Change in | Longs | Shorts | OI |
| Daily | -15% | 0% | -8% |
| Weekly | -17% | 0% | -9% |
Elsewhere, EUR/GBP is stable after its recent losses while the FTSE 100 index of leading London-listed stocks is higher in early European trading Thursday, along with continental European markets, as data suggested that coronavirus death tolls in Italy and Spain are easing. The coronavirus outbreak in the UK is starting to peak too, according to the country’s Health Secretary Matt Hancock.
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— Written by Martin Essex, Analyst and Editor
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