Forex Pros – Sterling slipped against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, erasing earlier gains after economists at Standard & Poor's warned that the UK's recovery is likely to lag behind that of France and Germany this year.
GBP/USD hit 1.4645 during European afternoon trade, shedding 0.05%, after falling froma daily high of 1.4743. Cable was likely to find resistance at 1.5054, the high of May 10, and support at 1.4229, the low of May 20 and a 14-month low.
Earlier in the day, the ratings agency issued the warning about the U.K. economy in a report, stating that uncertainty over huge budget deficits could hurt growth throughout Europe.
Also Thursday, a closely watched monthly report published by the data processing company ADP showed that U.S. private employers added fewer jobs in April than forecast.
The pound also slipped slightly versus the euro on Thursday, with EUR/GBP rising 0.02% to reach 0.8363.
Meanwhile, report from JP Morgan Cazenove showed that an early sale of the British government's holdings in Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland could help the United Kingdom retain its triple-A credit rating, The Telegraph reported.