GBP/USD weakens farther below 1.2900 handle, fresh weekly lows post-UK PMIs

• Disappointing UK PMI prints for November prompts some fresh selling.
• Break below the 1.2900 handle might lead to a further intraday weakness.

The intraday selling bias surrounding the British pound picked up some pace in the last hour and dragged the GBP/USD pair to fresh weekly lows, around the 1.2880-75 region.
 
The pair failed to capitalize on its early uptick to the 1.2925-30 region and turned lower for the fourth consecutive session on Friday. The intraday pullback accelerated further following the disappointing release of the first even preliminary UK PMI prints for November.
 
The first-ever flash version of the UK Manufacturing PMI fell more-than-expected to 48.3 in November, while the Services PMI also fell short of expectations and came in at 48.6 during the reported month – marking its weakest reading since July 2016.
 
The softer readings could very well be seen as pointing to a possible UK economic contraction during the fourth quarter of 2019 and turned out to be one of the key factors behind the pair’s latest leg of a sudden drop of around 40-50 pips over the past hour or so.
 
It will now be interesting to see if the pair is able to find any buying interest at lower levels or the ongoing slide marks a near-term bearish breakdown, setting the stage for an extension of the recent pullback from the vicinity of the key 1.30 psychological mark.

Technical levels to watch