GBP/USD to move around mid-1.3500s amid thin liquidity conditions

The GBP/USD pair gained some strong positive traction on Friday and moved back above the 1.3600 mark as the Brexit deal announcement and US stimulus remained supportive, albeit failed ahead of multi-year tops touched earlier this December. The cable held steady above mid-1.3500s during the Asian session and is unlikely to make any big moves in either direction amid holiday-thinned trading, FXStreet’s Haresh Menghani briefs.

Key quotes

“Both the UK and the EU will now have to ratify the deal. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that the UK Parliament will vote on the trade deal by December 30, a day before the end of the Brexit transition period. The European Parliament, however, has declined to vote on the accord this year due to the lack of time for scrutiny. The European Commission, instead, has proposed to provisionally apply the deal until February 28, 2021, as the EU nation members are scheduled to meet in January.”

“News that the US President Trump has signed a $2.3 trillion COVID-19 relief and government funding bill boosted investors’ confidence. This, in turn, was seen as a key factor that continued undermining the greenback’s relative safe-haven demand.”

“The UK banks will be closed in observance of Boxing Day. That said, developments surrounding coronavirus saga might infuse some volatility and assist traders to grab some short-term opportunities.”

“Bulls might now wait for a sustained move beyond the recent swing highs, around the 1.3620-25 region, before positioning for an extension of the recent upward trajectory. The momentum might then push the pair further towards the 1.3700 round-figure mark for the first time since May 2018. On the flip side, the key 1.3500 psychological mark might now protect the immediate downside and is closely followed by the 1.3480-75 horizontal support.”