Sterling rises as service sector steadies

The British pound rose on Wednesday, after the release of data that showed a stable performance by the UK's service sector above the 50-point barrier during July.

The British PMI reading held at 56.5 points in July, on par with market's forecasts and June's reading.

The US government revealed its contract with the company Johnson & Johnson to provide 100 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine worth $1 billion.

Investors are also anticipating the promising coronavirus vaccine by the British company AstraZeneca and Oxford University, which is expected to be available on September.

Coronavirus infections rose to 18.7 million confirmed cases globally, with a death toll of 700,000 victims, according to Johns Hopkins University.

As of 20:12 GMT, GBP/USD rose 0.3% to 1.3111, after hitting an intraday high of 1.3162, and a low of 1.3057.