GBP/USD remained steady

The pound traded steadily against the US dollar on Friday in proximity to session highs, heading for a third weekly gain, as trade remained subdued ahead of the US consumer confidence report, scheduled for release later in the day.

GBP/USD reached a session high at 1.5414 at 8:15 GMT, after which the pair consolidated at 1.5398. Support was likely to be received at July 24th low, 1.5290, while resistance was to be encountered at June 25th high, 1.5478.

Investors remained cautious, following the mixed data from the United States, released on Thursday. The Labor Department in the country stated that initial jobless claims rose by 7 000 to reach 343 000 during the week ended on July 20th 2013. Results during the preceding week were revised up to 336 000 from 334 000 previously. This indicator seemed to put larger weight upon the demand for the greenback, despite the stability, demonstrated by durable goods orders. It was shown that they rose by 4.2% in June in comparison with preliminary estimates of a 1.3% rise, while in May the value of the indicator was revised up to an increase by 5.2% from a 3.6% rise previously. Core durable goods orders, which did not contain volatile components such as transportation, remained unchanged in June, compared to expectations that the indicator will show a 0.5% increase.

Uncertainty over the future of Federal Reserve Banks stimulus program was getting stronger.

In the mean time, Bank of England is expected to announce its next monetary policy decision on August 1st, when Governor Mark Carney will present analysis on issuing forward guidance on interest rates. Bloomberg reported that policymakers will maintain their bond-purchasing objective at 375 billion GBP and leave the base interest rate at a record low level of 0.50%, according to a survey of experts.

Elsewhere, the sterling was unchanged against the euro, as EUR/GBP was trading at 0.8629 at 9:36 GMT. On the other hand, GBP/JPY pair was losing ground during the current session, down by 0.60% to trade at 151.92 at 9:36 GMT.

British pound has risen by 0.5% over the past three months, according to Bloomberg Correlation-Weighted Indexes, which track 10 developed-nation currencies. The euro has advanced 3.3%, while the US dollar has increased its value by 1.1%.