GBP/USD struggles near 2-week lows, just above 1.30 handle

• GBP/USD turns lower for the third consecutive session on Thursday.
• Carney’s dovish sounding remarks exerted some pressure on the GBP.
• Bears eye a break below 1.30 mark amid absent relevant macro data.

The GBP/USD pair maintained its offered tone through the mid-European session and is currently placed near the lower end of its daily trading range, or two-week lows.

Following a brief consolidation through the early part of Thursday's trading action, a combination of factors exerted some fresh downward pressure and dragged the pair into the negative territory for the third consecutive session.

Pound remains on the defensive

A surprisingly more dovish tilt by the BoE Governor Mark Carney turned out to be one of the key factors that exerted some downward pressure on the British pound and led to the pair's negative move for the fifth session in the previous six.

This coupled with some follow-through US dollar buying interest, though lacked any strong follow-through amid a mildly negative tone surrounding the US Treasury bond yields, further collaborated to the pair's intraday slide.

The pair dropped to its lowest level since December 27 but managed to find some support just ahead of the key 1.30 psychological mark, which should now act as a key pivotal point for short-term traders amid fears of a no-deal Brexit.

Thursday's US economic docket features the release of the usual weekly jobless claims, which seems unlikely to influence the price action or produce any meaningful trading opportunities ahead of Friday's closely watched US jobs report (NFP).

Technical levels to watch