GBP/USD: on the eve of the meeting of the Bank of England

After the publication today (09:30 GMT) of data indicating that the growth of activity in the service sector of the UK in January slowed to a 16-month low, the pound declined. The index of supply managers (PMI) for the services sector of the UK economy fell in January to 53.0 from 54.2 in December (the forecast was 54.3). The data on the service sector was preceded by disappointing statistics on activity in the manufacturing and construction sectors, published the previous week. As the research company IHS Markit Ltd. reported last week, the purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the UK manufacturing sector in January was 55.3 against 56.2 in December and the forecast of 56.5. The data presented indicate that the growth in activity in the manufacturing sector also slowed to a 6-month low against the backdrop of rising price pressures on companies and consumers.

The slowdown in activity growth in all important sectors of the economy signals to the Bank of England about the need for continued soft monetary policy.

The nearest meeting of the Bank of England, dedicated to interest rates, will be held on Thursday. The decision on the interest rate of the Bank of England will be published at 12:00 (GMT). Market participants take into account the 50% probability of increasing the Bank of England's key interest rate in the first half of the year and 2-3 increases by 0.25% each time for three years.

Nevertheless, the Bank of England can maintain the current soft monetary policy, given the slowdown in the most important sectors of the British economy, despite the sharp increase in inflation after the referendum on Brexit.

Meanwhile, the dollar holds the positions gained on Friday in the foreign exchange market after the strong US labor market data for January, published on Friday, strengthened expectations that inflation growth could lead to a more rapid tightening of monetary policy in the US.

The growth of hourly earnings in the private sector in January in the annual comparison was the highest since June 2009 and amounted to 2.9% (in annual terms). At the same time, unemployment in the US in January remained at the same level of 4.1%, and the number of new jobs in the non-agricultural sector of the US economy was 200,000 in January (the forecast was +180,000).

At the meeting of the Fed held in late January, its leaders expressed their hope that inflation will grow in 2018. "The level of employment, household expenses and companies' investments were marked by a significant growth, while the unemployment rate remained low", the Federal Reserve said in a statement.

Thus, if the Bank of England signals about the need to continue to maintain a soft monetary policy, the pound may weaken, and the GBP / USD pair is in danger of breaking the bullish trend that began in January 2017.

From how aggressive the statements of the members of the Committee on Monetary Policy of the Bank of England will be, the dynamics of the pound will depend after the meeting of the Bank of England.

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Support levels: 1.4100, 1.4050, 1.4000, 1.3970, 1.3800, 1.3700, 1.3630, 1.3550, 1.3420, 1.3300, 1.3210

Resistance levels: 1.4123, 1.4270, 1.4340, 1.4400, 1.4500, 1.4575

Trading Scenarios

Sell ​​Stop 1.4070. Stop-Loss 1.4160. Take-Profit 1.4050, 1.4000, 1.3970, 1.3800, 1.3700, 1.3630, 1.3550, 1.3420, 1.3300, 1.3210

Buy Stop 1.4160. Stop-Loss 1.4070. Take-Profit 1.4200, 1.4270, 1.4340, 1.4400, 1.4500, 1.4575

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