The GBPUSD pair erased most of the early gains as investors digested latest figures from the UK labour market. The UK Office for National Statistics Office for National Statistics reported that the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.7% in December as widely expected, while the number of people claiming unemployment-related benefits fell by 12.9K in January. Moreover, December reading was also revised down sharply to -3.2K as compared to the 19.7k rise estimated originally. The number of people in work grew by 74k in Q4 of 2022, easily topping analysts’ projections of a 40k increase. The number of part-time employees jumped to the highest level since the September-November period of 2021, however the number of full-time employees decreased but still above pre-pandemic levels. On self-employment, part-time self-employed increased, while full-time self-employed remained low.
On the other hand, in November 2022 to January 2023, job vacancies fell by 76K to 1,134K, the seventh consecutive quarterly fall, reflecting uncertainty across industries, as survey respondents continue to cite economic pressures as a factor in holding back on recruitment.
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Open account Try demo Download mobile app Download mobile appMeanwhile US dollar trades slightly lower, extending yesterday's decline, however further downside move may be capped as traders might refrain from placing aggressive bets ahead of the crucial US consumer inflation figures, which will be released at 1:30 pm BST.
From a technical point of view, GBPUSD rose sharply in the morning after the release of UK data, however the pair pulled back after buyers failed to break above the 100 EMA (purple line). If sellers manage to regain full control, then declines may deepen towards local support at 1.2075. On the other hand, if bulls manage to regain control, next key resistance to watch can be found around 1.2215.
GBPUSD, H4 interval. Source: xStation5
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