The ascending pattern on the hourly candle GBP/USD chart held its ground and has pushed the rate higher.
Moreover, during Thursday's London trading morning hours the rate was trading amidst the hourly simple moving averages, which were the last resistance to the rate before the pivot point at 1.2212.
Institute for Supply Management released the US Non-Manufacturing PMI data, which came out worse-than-expected of 53.7 compared with the forecast of 55.5.
Anthony Nieves, Chair of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Non-Manufacturing Business Survey Committee commented: "The NMI registered 53.7 percent, which is 1.4 percentage points lower than the June reading of 55.1 percent. This represents continued growth in the non-manufacturing sector, at a slower rate. This is the index's lowest reading since August 2016, when it registered 51.8 percent. Respondents indicated ongoing concerns related to tariffs and employment resources. Comments remained mixed about business conditions and the overall economy."
UK economic data
GBP/USD short-term review
On Thursday morning, short term forecasts were based on what will happen at the 1.2170 level, where the three hourly simple moving averages were about to meet.Hourly Chart