Pound Rallies Despite Record COVID-19 Deaths and Johnson in ICU

The  Sterling pound today rallied higher against the  US dollar despite the  fact that the  UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson being hospitalised in  ICU. The  GBP/USD currency pair posted gains as  buyers stepped in  capitalising on  the  greenback’s fall from recent highs.
The  GBP/USD currency pair today rallied from an  opening low of  1.2217 in  the  Asian session to  a  high of  1.2384 in  the  mid-London session but was off these highs at  the  time of  writing.
The risk-off mood primarily drove the pair’s rally as  investors bought up riskier assets and  sold the  safe-haven US dollar. Investor risk-appetite remained elevated amid an  uptick in  global equity markets, as  several countries reported lower coronavirus deaths and  new infections. Bullish investors ignored the  fact that COVID-19 infections and  deaths were on  the  rise in  the  UK even as  Boris Johnson remains hospitalised. However, Dominic Raab is currently deputising Boris Johnson whenever needed as  officials expect the  Prime Minister will recover and  resume his duties soon.
The  sell-off in  the  greenback as  tracked by  the  US Dollar Index, which hit a  low of  — today also boosted the  pair. The  release of  the  downbeat UK Halifax house prices index for  March in  the  early London session had a  muted impact on  the  cable.
The  currency pair’s future performance is likely to  be affected by  geopolitical events given tomorrow’s empty UK and  US dockets.
The  GBP/USD currency pair was trading at  1.2328 as  at  17:08 GMT having rallied from a  low of  1.2217. The  GBP/JPY currency pair was trading at  134.31 having risen from a  low fo 133.10.

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