Ella 
GBP/USD gained some positive traction for the second day in a row on Monday, building on Friday’s rebound from the 1.2600 round figure, or one-and-a-half-week trough. Spot prices hit multi-day highs around 1.2660-1.2665 during the Asian trading session, a momentum driven by a combination of factors.
The pound (GBP) was supported by hawkish comments from Bank of England (BOE) chief economist Huw Pill on Friday, saying the first cut in key interest rates was still some way off. On the other hand, the U.S. dollar (USD) remains subdued after disappointing U.S. macro data and hawkish comments from Federal Reserve (Fed) officials on Friday. On top of this, the recent risk-on rally in global equity markets has further weakened the safe-haven green card, which in turn has provided some support to the GBP/USD pair.
However, the dollar’s downside appears to be limited as more and more people believe that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates higher for longer. Traders are also likely to avoid making aggressive directional bets ahead of this week’s key U.S. economic data, including Friday’s closely watched non-farm payrolls (NFP) data and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Trump’s report on Wednesday and Thursday. Powell’s semiannual congressional testimony. Therefore, caution is needed before positioning for further appreciation in the near-term for the GBP/USD pair.
