What Is the GBP/USD Doing Today
GBP/USD — universally called "cable" by professional traders — is one of the four most-traded pairs in forex. The nickname dates back to the 1800s when the GBP/USD exchange rate was transmitted between London and New York by transatlantic telegraph cable. Today cable remains a flagship pair: high liquidity, well-covered on both sides, and one of the most reactive to economic news of any major.
Sterling tends to amplify USD moves rather than offset them. When the dollar is strong globally, GBP/USD often falls more than EUR/USD does in percentage terms, because UK economic exposure to global trade is greater. The pair's typical daily range is 30–50% wider than EUR/USD's, which makes it attractive to traders looking for movement but risky for traders using tight stops.
GBP/USD Pair Profile
- Typical spread: 0.5–1.5 pips at most retail brokers, second-tightest after EUR/USD
- Best trading hours: 7:00am–11:00am London for UK data; 1pm–5pm London for the NY overlap
- Volatility profile: High — typically 80–130 pips average daily range, expanding to 200+ pips on BoE or FOMC days
- Pip value (per 1.0 lot): ~$10 per pip on a standard 1.0 lot
- Correlated pairs: EUR/USD (positive ~0.85), GBP/JPY (positive ~0.7), EUR/GBP (negative ~0.5)
What Moves the GBP/USD
GBP/USD reacts to both UK and US news. Watch both schedules:
British Pound (GBP) side
- Bank of England MPC rate decisions and minutes
- UK CPI inflation (the BoE has the highest inflation tolerance of the majors)
- UK GDP, retail sales and labour market reports
- UK political headlines (budget, fiscal policy, Brexit fallout still matters)
- BoE Governor Bailey's speeches and the Monetary Policy Report
US Dollar (USD) side
- Fed (FOMC) rate decisions and Powell press conferences
- NFP non-farm payrolls (first Friday of the month)
- US CPI inflation print (around the 12th of each month)
- PCE — the Fed's preferred inflation gauge
- US Treasury yields, particularly the 2-year and 10-year