Forexpros – The pound was higher against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, as market sentiment improved ahead of the Federal Reserve’s rate decision later in the day but gains were capped by sustained concerns over the euro zone’s debt crisis.
GBP/USD hit 1.5626 during European morning trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.5602, rising 0.11%.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.5525, the low of November 30 and resistance at 1.5716, the high of December 5.
Rating agencies warned on Monday that last week’s European Union summit did not go far enough in easing immediate concerns about the region’s debt woes.
Moody’s said it intended to review ratings of all EU member states in the first quarter of 2012, while Standard and Poor’s still threatened to downgrade the ratings of 15 euro zone nations.
Fitch Ratings said the summit had failed to provide a “comprehensive” solution to the debt crisis.
In the U.K., a report by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said that the country’s house price balance declined less-than-expected in November, falling 17% after a 24% decline the previous month.
Analysts had expected the U.K. house price balance to fall 25% in November.
Elsewhere, the pound was up against the euro with EUR/GBP edging down 0.02%, to hit 0.8459.
Later in the day, the U.K. was to release data on consumer price inflation. The U.S. was also to publish official data on retail sales, while the Federal Reserve was to announce its federal funds rate.
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