GBP/USD steady near highs after US employment report

GBP/USD moved slightly lower, but overall remained little changed near 1-month highs following the release of mixed US employment data.

The report showed US economy created 161,000 new jobs in October, below the 175,000 expected, but September and August’s reading were upwardly revised by a combined 44,000 jobs. The jobless rate fell to 4.9%, as expected. Average hourly earnings for private-sector workers rose 2.8% YoY in October, the strongest annual wage growth since June 2009.  

The dollar barely reacted, with GBP/USD moving only marginally from a high of 1.2500 to the 1.2465 area. At time of writing, the pair is trading at 1.2485, up % on the day.

The pound has been rising over the last sessions, underpinned by a High Court rule saying that UK government must get the Parliament’s approval to trigger Article 50 and BoE’s decision to leave rates unchanged, signalling that the rate could move “in either direction”.

GBP/USD levels to watch

As for technical levels, immediate resistances could be found at 1.2500 (psychological level) and not much till 1.2620 (Oct 7 high). On the flip side, supports are seen at 1.2448 (Nov 4 low), 1.2343 (Oct 10 high) and 1.2274 (10-day SMA).