Sterling scales two-month high versus greenback

Sterling rose in American trade to November 15 highs against dollar, following earlier data from Britain and the US. 

As of 05:49 GMT, GBP/USD rose 0.59% to 1.2961, with a two-month high at 1.2965, and a session-low at 1.2832. 

The UK Parliament scheduled another vote on an alternative Brexit plan for January 29. 

The British Parliament voted overwhelmingly to reject the Brexit deal with the EU set up by PM Theresa May, while still saving the PM from a no-confidence vote by a slight margin. 

Earlier US data showed unemployment claims fell 3 thousand to a total of 213 thousand in the week ending January 12, while continuing claims for the week ending January 5 rose 18K to 1.737 million. 

The Philly Manufacturing Index rose to 17 from 9.4 in December, beating estimates of 9.7 easily.