- GBP/USD continues to push higher toward the weekend.
- Upbeat market mood lifts US stocks, weighs on USD.
- US Dollar Index remains under pressure, closes in on 93.00.
After spending the first half of the day moving sideways around 1.2950, the GBP/USD pair gained traction in the American session on Friday and climbed to its highest level since early September at 1.3015. As of writing, the pair was up 0.6% on the day at 1.3011.
Risk flows continue to hurt the USD
In the absence of fresh developments surrounding Brexit talks, the USD’s market valuation continues to drive GBP/USD’s movements.
Supported by stimulus hopes, Wall Street’s main indexes opened in the positive territory for the third straight day on Friday. White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said US President Donald Trump has approved a revised stimulus package that includes checks to individuals and an extension of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
According to the Wall Street Journal, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will deliver the revised package, which will be worth around $1.8 trillion, to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi later in the day.
Boosted by these developments, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average are up 0.7% and 0.9%, respectively. Meanwhile, the US Dollar Index is down 0.52% on the day at 93.09.
Earlier in the day, the data published by the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that Industrial Production in August contracted by 6.4% on a yearly basis. Additionally, the ONS reported that the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 2.1% on a monthly basis in August and missed the market expectation for an expansion of 4.6% by a wide margin. Nevertheless, these data releases had virtually no impact on the GBP’s performance against its rivals.
Technical levels to watch for
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