The cable rose to session highs against the dollar on Thursday after the Bank of England kept monetary policy unchanged following its latest policy-setting meeting. GBP/USD hit 1.5074 during European afternoon trade, the session high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.5062, gaining 0.29%. Cable was likely to find support at 1.4964, the session low and the pair’s lowest since July 2010 and resistance at 1.5154, Wednesday’s high. BoE policymakers voted to leave interest rates on hold at a record low 0.5% and keep the size of its asset purchase program unchanged at GBP375 billion. The minutes of the meeting will be published on Wednesday March 20. The minutes of the central bank’s February meeting showed that three policymakers, including Governor Mervyn King, voted in favor of resuming asset purchases. Concerns over the outlook for the recession hit UK economy have weighed heavily on sterling so far this year and bolstered expectations for more quantitative easing by the BoE. The pound pared back losses against the euro, with EUR/GBP inching up 0.06% to 0.8641, off a session high of 0.8698. Sentiment on the single currency remained fragile ahead of the outcome of the European Central Bank’s policy meeting later in the session. The ECB was widely expected to leave rates on hold at 0.75%, but concerns over the economic outlook for the region fuelled speculation over the prospect of future rate cuts.
EasyForexNews Research Team