Back
25 Apr 2013
Forex: GBP/USD keeps gains near 1.5450
FXstreet.com (Barcelona) - The GBP/USD remains at highs following the unexpected surprise of the UK GDP Q1, with the pair moving almost 200 pips to the upside as it peaked at 1.5452 high. As of writing, the GBP/USD trades at 1.5439 (+1.13% on the day).
The preliminary release of UK GDP Q1 shows a 0.3% quarterly rise, beating the 0.1% consensus, while the annualized figure rose from 0.2% to 0.6%, beating 0.3% expectations. “The unexpected strength came from the services side of the economy with an inexplicable +0.6% aggregate gain there, and a particularly notable 1.4% increase in the transportation and communication sector, which is completely at odds with the reports of poor weather disrupting the distribution channels”, wrote TD Securities analyst Jacqui Douglas, adding that this upside surprise seems to be one that will stick, rather than pull expectations out of Q2, “and we would expect GDP to linger around this same pace of growth in the second quarter”.
The UK Index of Services rose from -0.2% to 0.1% but stayed below the 0.2% consensus.
On the downside, April-11 high at 1.5412 is first support, followed by 1.5300 and 1.5260 (March-24 high). Resistance is at 1.5451 (February 20 high) and the psychological level at 1.5900.
The preliminary release of UK GDP Q1 shows a 0.3% quarterly rise, beating the 0.1% consensus, while the annualized figure rose from 0.2% to 0.6%, beating 0.3% expectations. “The unexpected strength came from the services side of the economy with an inexplicable +0.6% aggregate gain there, and a particularly notable 1.4% increase in the transportation and communication sector, which is completely at odds with the reports of poor weather disrupting the distribution channels”, wrote TD Securities analyst Jacqui Douglas, adding that this upside surprise seems to be one that will stick, rather than pull expectations out of Q2, “and we would expect GDP to linger around this same pace of growth in the second quarter”.
The UK Index of Services rose from -0.2% to 0.1% but stayed below the 0.2% consensus.
On the downside, April-11 high at 1.5412 is first support, followed by 1.5300 and 1.5260 (March-24 high). Resistance is at 1.5451 (February 20 high) and the psychological level at 1.5900.