Pound rises against dollar, hitting 2-day high; Hoenig eyed

NEW YORK (Forex News Now) – Sterling rose against the dollar on Monday, hitting a 2-day high, despite a report that suggested the U.K. economic recovery was set to slow down during the second half of the year.

In early late Asian currency market trading, GBP/USD struck 1.5618, cable’s highest since Thursday. The currency pair later retreated slightly to trade at 1.5581, up 0.29 percent on the day.

Accountancy body ICAEW and accountants Grant Thornton said earlier that nearly a fifth of U.K. businesses now feel less confident about the coming year than they did during the second quarter, The Guardian reported on Monday.

According to GBP USD analysis, GBP/USD was likely to touch immediate support around Friday’s low, 1.5463, and encounter resistance around the high of Aug. 18, 1.5688.

FX traders, meanwhile, awaited comments from Thomas Hoenig, a member of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy-setting committee, for clues to future shifts in monetary policy.

Elsewhere, sterling rose slightly versus the yen: GBP/JPY traded at 132.99, up 0.01 percent.