British Pound Pummelled as Crypto Contagion Engulfs Risk Assets. Lower GBP/USD Again?

British Pound, GBP/USD, US Dollar, Crypto, FTX, Crude Oil, Gold – Talking Points

• British Pound support wilted after US Dollar resumed strengthening
• Crypto chaos leaked into many markets as concerns grow a liquidity crunch
• US CPI lies ahead and may see more volatility. Will GBP/USD test the downside?

The British Pound has been swept up in the pandemonium emanating from the turmoil in the crypto currency space. The disintegration of FTX and its inability to strike a rescue deal with Binance saw a meltdown in risk assets.

The US Justice department have said they are looking into the FTX situation and have been touch with the SEC in regard to the matter. There is a concern emerging that there could a knock-on effect from margin calls cascading into a demand for liquidity from other assets.

APAC equities followed Wall Street lower, and the US Dollar resumed it ascendency across the board into the New York close. It has given up a little ground so far in the Asian session.

Tonight’s US CPI could be the key for the US Dollar and markets in general as it could feed into perceptions where the Fed is headed with monetary policy.

Yesterday saw Chicago Fed Chief Evans softened from an ultra-hawkish stance. On the other hand, Richmond Fed President Barkin and Minneapolis Fed Boss Kashkari re-iterated their very hawkish view toward monetary policy.

According to a Bloomberg survey of economists, headline month-on-month CPI for October is forecast to be 0.6% against 0.4% for September and 7.9% for the year-on-year figure against 8.2% previously.

Month-on-month ex-food and energy CPI is forecast to show a slight easing to 0.5% against 0.6% prior, with the annual read expected to be 6.5% versus 6.6% previously.

Crude oil continues to languish after the sell-off, with the WTI futures contract under US$ 86 bbl, while the Brent contract is nearing US$ 92.50 bbl. Gold has held up well, trading above US$ 1,700 an ounce.

The full economic calendar can be viewed here.

GBP/USD TECHNICAL ANALYSIS

GBP/USD collapsed overnight after failing to overcome a recent peak at 1.1646 and that level might continue to offer resistance.

Further up, resistance could at the prior high and breakpoints of 1.1738, 1.1760 and 1.1890.

On the downside, support may lie at the prior lows of 1.1148, 1.1061, 1.0924 and 1.0354.

Chart created in TradingView

— Written by Daniel McCarthy, Strategist for DailyFX.com

Please contact Daniel via @DanMcCathyFX on Twitter