Sterling extends gains to five-month high after BoE decisions
Sterling rose in European trade on Thursday for another session against dollar, marking five-month highs after Bank of England's policy decisions.
GBP/USD rose 0.5% to 1.3183, the highest since March, and after closing up 0.3% yesterday, the first profit in four days.
Sterling rose 5.5% in July, the second monthly profit in a row and the largest since May 2009.
The largest profit in 11 years came as the greenback tumbled and demand rose on higher risk currencies.
The dollar index fell 0.2% on Thursday on track for the third loss, marking 27-month lows at 92.52.
The disappointing US payrolls data in July dented dollar's appeal and hurt prospects for US economy.
Otherwise, Bank of England voted on Thursday to maintain rates at 0.10%, and the assets purchase program at 745 billion pound.
The bank expanded its program by 100 billion pounds a month at the last meeting to counter Covid 19 and EU uncertainty.
Oil near five-month highs as US oversupply concerns recede
Oil prices rose in European trade for the fifth straight session to near five-month highs as concerns recede about US oversupply.
US crude rose 0.6% to $42.43 a barrel, while Brent climbed 0.5% to $45.52 a barrel.
US crude rallied 1.7% on Wednesday, the fourth profit in a row, marking a five-month high at $43.50 a barrel, while Brent rose 2.25% to the highest since March at $46.22.
Oil's gains came after the US Energy Administration reported a cut in commercial stocks by 7.4 million barrels in the week ending July 31, passing estimates of a 3.4 million cut.
Total stocks tumbled to 518.5 million barrels, the lowest since April 10 in a positive sign for US demand.
US output fell 100 thousand bpd last week to a total of 11 million bpd, while remaining the world's top producer.
Gold near record highs as dollar declines
Gold prices rose in European trade for the third straight session above the historic barrier of $2,000 and nearing record highs.
Gold rose 0.8% to $2,053.97 an ounce, after closing up 0.9% yesterday, marking record highs at $2,055.
The dollar index fell 0.2% on Thursday, the third decline in a row and hitting 27-month lows at 92.52.
Disappointing US jobs data damaged dollar and hurt prospects of US economy.
Dollar is also hurt by mounting Democratic-Republican political tensions on the financial rescue package against the virus.
Gold holdings at the SPDR Gold Trust rose 10.23 metric tonnes yesterday, the third increase in a row, to a total of 1,267 tonnes, the highest since February 2013.
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.