GBP/JPY looking to make headway above 150.50
- The Sterling reversed the Yen's gains to lift for the remainder of Wednesday's trading, and is still holding near the top side.
- UK data misses are knocking the wind out of the Pound's sails, but buyers are remaining resilient.
The GBP/JPY pair is running into selling at the 150.50 level, after recovering from a risk flight in yesterday's trading.
Wednesday saw the GBP/JPY pair tumble in the Asia/Europe overlap, the Yen's jump on risk flights being helped along by short action on the Sterling following the UK's Construction PMI that missed expectations, but the GBP was able to stage a recovery, recapturing the 150.00 major handle and pushing into the 150.50 level in the early Tokyo session today, although bids are beginning to thin and profit taking is knocking some of the momentum out of the pair.
The Sterling will next see the Markit Services PMI at 08:30 GMT for Thursday's market, which is expected to show a contraction from 54.5 to 54.0, but a worse-than-expected showing could easily knock the GBP for another round of selling on reaction.
GBP/JPY Levels to watch
The pair has been lifting steadily through March following February's tumble from 156.60, but downside pressure has remained steady and the pair will need to bust through 150.60 to challenge an old resistance line at 152.50, while sellers are going to face a challenge at support from the last swing low at 148.80 and the 200-day SMA near 148.50.