Pound Falls on Bearish Sentiment as UK to Test COVID-19 Vaccine

The  Sterling pound today fell against the  US dollar as  investor sentiment remained decidedly bearish amid news that the  UK was developing a  COVID-19 vaccine. The  GBP/USD currency pair fell despite the  release of  upbeat UK jobs data as  investor risk appetite evaporated pushing the  pair lower into negative territory.
The  GBP/USD currency pair today fell from an  opening high of  1.2442 in  the  Asian session to  a  low of  1.2247 in  the  American session but was slightly off these lows at  the  time of  writing.
The  currency pair’s decline was attributed to  the  risk-off market sentiment as  investors reacted to  Monday’s oil sell-off that saw crude futures trade in  negative territory for  the  first time. News that North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-Un is ailing also dampened investor sentiment amid uncertainty as  to  who would be his successor. The  release of  the  latest UK employment data by  the  Office for  National Statistics had a  muted impact on  the  currency pair, which kept falling. UK initial jobless claims increased by  12,100 persons instead of  the  expected 172,500 individuals. However, the  unemployment rate ticked up to  4% versus the  consensus estimate of  3.9%.
News that the  UK would start testing a  new coronavirus vaccine on  humans this week provided the  pair with some relief but was not enough to  trigger a  reversal. The  stronger greenback as  tracked by  the  US Dollar Index, which hit a  high of  100.48 today kept the  pair heading lower.
The  currency pair’s future performance is likely to  be affected by  tomorrow’s UK inflation data and  geopolitical events.
The  GBP/USD currency pair was trading at  1.2296 as  at  20:45 GMT having dropped from a  high of  1.2442. The  GBP/JPY currency pair was trading at  132.51 having fallen from a  high of  134.04.

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