GBP/USD retreats after flirting with 1.2800

• The US Nonfarm Payrolls report showed the economy added 227K new jobs in November.
• The Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index jumped to 74 in December.
• The GBP/USD pair turned negative and approaches 1.2700.

The US Dollar (USD) fell following the release of the United States (US) Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report, pushing GBP/USD to a fresh one-month high of 1.2810. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the country added 227,000 new job positions in November, beating the 200,000 expected.

Additionally, the Unemployment Rate ticked up to 4.2% in November from 4.1%, meeting expectations. The Labor Force Participation Rate edged lower to 62.5%, while the annual wage inflation, as measured by the change in the Average Hourly Earnings, held steady at 4%, coming in above the market forecast of 3.9%.

The US Dollar, however, trimmed losses and gained momentum after the release of the preliminary estimate of the December US Consumer Sentiment Index, which jumped to 74 from the previous 71.8 while beating the expected 73.

Odds for an interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve (Fed) jumped after US data, pushing stocks and the Greenback higher.

GBP/USD Technical Outlook

The British Pound turned negative against the USD on a daily basis, with the pair hovering around 1.2700. The 200-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) attracted sellers, currently standing at around 1.2820. The 20-day SMA, on the other hand, maintains its bearish slope below the current level at 1.2690, the immediate support en route to the 1.2650 price zone.