GBP/USD Price Analysis: Retreats from 1.2780 hurdle as BoE hawks step back ahead of US NFP

• GBP/USD takes offers to extend pullback from the highest level in a fortnight.
• Three-week-old horizontal resistance challenges Cable buyers as US employment report looms.
• BoE hawks reassess previous optimism amid risk-off mood and weigh on the Pound Sterling price.
• Key EMAs, ascending support line from late May restrict short-term downside.

GBP/USD consolidates the first weekly gains in three while refreshing the intraday low near 1.2730 amid very early Friday morning in London. In doing so, the Cable pair justifies the market’s preparations for the all-important US employment report for June, as well as the reassessment of the hawkish bets on the Bank of England (BoE), not to forget the downbeat signals from the options market.

Also read: GBP/USD grinds higher past 1.2700 even as options market signals prod Cable bulls, US NFP eyed

Technically, the Pound Sterling pair’s failure to defend the previous day’s recovery from the 100-Exponential Moving Average (EMA) joins sluggish MACD signals and a U-turn from a three-week-long horizontal resistance near 1.2770-80 to lure GBP/USD bears.

It’s worth noting, however, that a 1.5-month-old rising support line and the 200-EMA, respectively near 1.2655 and 1.2630, appear extra filters toward the south and can easily challenge the bears even if they manage to conquer the 100-EMA support of 1.2680.

Alternatively, an upside break of the 1.2770-80 resistance area can propel the GBP/USD price towards the yearly high marked in June near 1.2850.

However, the RSI conditions challenge the Pound Sterling’s run-up beyond the same, which if ignored could propel prices to the 1.3000 psychological magnet.

GBP/USD: Four-hour chart

Trend: Limited downside expected