- 52% of pending orders in the 100-pip range are to SELL
- Traders have become bullish with 53% long positions
- Strong support near 1.3860
- Upcoming events: US Unemployment Claims
The US private sector created 235K jobs in the reported month, expanding at a slightly slower pace than in January.
At the same time, US non-farm employment change number still surpassed the February's forecast. Ahu Yildirmaz, the Vice President and Co-head of the ADP Research Institute, said that the US labor market is keeping its growth rate uninterrupted and that persistent gains have been seen in industries related to leisure, hospitality and retail.
Quiet session
Thursday's trading session is expected to be relatively calm in terms of fundamentals, as the only noteworthy data release scheduled for today is the weekly US unemployment claims at 1230GMT.
GBP/USD returns to 1.39
Despite some minor fluctuations during the previous 24 hours, the GBP/USD exchange rate returned at the same price level as on Wednesday morning slightly below the 1.39 mark.The first part of yesterday was dominated by bears which unsuccessfully tried to surpass a support cluster formed by the weekly and monthly PPs and the 55– and 200-hour SMAs circa 1.3860.
Even though the general tendency still remains tended northwards, bulls have seemingly lost their strength during the last two sessions. This indicates that some downward pressure is likely to prevail soon. However, given the strength of the aforementioned support, the Pound might still push higher this week up to the trend-line and the 38.20% Fibo retracement circa 1.3950.
Hourly chart
The Sterling is trading in a 14-month channel against the US Dollar. In line with this pattern, the pair should continue its movement lower down to its lower boundary and the 100-day SMA circa 1.36.
In terms of this week, some short-term appreciation might still be possible.
Daily Chart
The market sentiment of SWFX traders has turned bullish today with 53% of open positions being long. Meanwhile, 51% of pending orders are still to sell the Sterling.
The market sentiment of OANDA traders is bearish, as 51% of open positions are short (-1%). Meanwhile, Saxo Bank clients have become bearish with 55% of short positions, compared to market equilibrium on the previous session.
Spreads (avg, pip) / Trading volume / Volatility