Good morning,
The standout moment from yesterday’s trading session was GBPUSD and the way it danced around the key 1.30 handle. Following a 7.58% increase from the 30th June, price stalled at the 1.3175 mark and was well overdue some sort of correction.
Due to the historic importance of 1.30, the market was littered with orders and options from clients all over the world, which in turn can create unwanted volatility. This can sometimes be referred to as a “stop hunt” meaning that retail traders who are holding speculative positions just under or above key levels are taken out, adding more FX volume to the direction price is heading. That certainly looked the case as price skidded to 1.2980 before reversing higher.
Following the explosion in Lebanon, the price of Gold surged to another record high, dragging the Dollar lower as the markets looked for funding. At the time of writing this update, GBPUSD is back above the key 1.30 level but will be keenly contested this week. If you’re a US Dollar buyer or seller, this is the time to be thinking about your strategy and risk appetite. US data today includes employment change, trade balances, market services PMI and non-manufacturing PMI for July, all before tomorrow’s Bank of England rate update.
Eurozone retail sales for June came in as expected with no nasty surprises from the high-street.
Have a great day
Author: Alistair Hutson, Senior Relationship Manager
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