Forex - GBP/USD gains on solid U.K. retail sales, mixed U.S. data

Investing.com - The pound firmed against the dollar on Thursday after U.K. retail sales beat expectations, while a mixed bag of U.S. economic indicators prompted investors to avoid the greenback amid uncertainty over when the Federal Reserve will begin tapering its stimulus programs.

Monetary stimulus tools such as the Fed's USD85 billion in monthly bond purchases keep the dollar weak by driving down interest rates, and talk of such policies staying in place can soften the greenback.

In U.S. trading on Thursday, GBP/USD was trading at 1.5577, up 0.50%, up from a session low of 1.5496 and off from a high of 1.5594.
 
Cable was likely to find support at 1.5423, Wednesday's low, and resistance at 1.5752, the high from June 17.

The pound firmed after the Office for National Statistics reported that U.K. retail sales climbed 1.1% in July from June, far outpacing expectations for a 0.6% gain after a 0.2% increase in June.

Retail sales rose 3.0% on year, beating expectations for a 2.5% gain after rising at an annual rate of 1.9% in June.

Core retail sales, which exclude automobile sales, rose 1.1% in July from June, above forecasts for a 0.6% gain, after increasing 0.3% in the preceding month.

Mixed data out of the U.S., meanwhile, clouded the fate of U.S. monetary stimulus programs and repelled many investors away from the greenback.

The Department of Labor reported earlier that weekly jobless claims in the U.S. fell to their lowest level since January 2008 last week, dropping by 15,000 to 320,000.

The Department of Labor also revealed that the U.S. consumer price index rose 0.2% in July from June and 2.0% from July of last year, in line with analysts' forecasts.

The core consumer price index, which is stripped of volatile food and energy costs, also rose 0.2% in July from June and 1.7% on year, also matching consensus forecasts.

The data reinforced views held by many the economic recovery may be strong enough to prompt the U.S. Federal Reserve to announce plans to taper its monthly USD85 billion bond-buying program this year, though soft output data dampened recent expectations for tapering to begin at the Fed's September meeting.

U.S. industrial production came in flat in July, according to the Federal Reserve, missing expectations for a 0.3% increase.

A separate Federal Reserve report revealed that manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia-region of the U.S. expanded at its slowest pace in four months in August, while manufacturing activity in New York state fell unexpectedly.

The Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index fell to 9.3 in August from 19.8 in July, falling far short of market forecasts for a 15.0 reading.

The Federal Reserve's New York Empire State Manufacturing Index fell to 8.24 in August from 9.46 in July, defying expectations for a gain to 10.00.

The data prompted may to trade on expectations that the Fed will put off tapering asset purchases until December and keep the dollar weak via monthly liquidity injections until then.

The pound, meanwhile, was up against the euro and up against the yen, with EUR/GBP down 0.38% at 0.8518 and GBP/JPY up 0.20% at 152.40.

On Friday, the U.S. will release data on building permits, a leading indicator of future construction sector activity, as well as data on housing starts. The University of Michigan is to release its closely watched preliminary data on consumer sentiment.