GBP/USD hits fresh session lows, around mid-1.2800s

   •  A goodish pickup in the USD demand prompts some fresh selling on Thursday.
   •  Fresh US-China trade spat further benefits greenback’s safe-haven appeal.

The GBP/USD pair held on to its weaker tone through the early European session and is currently placed at session low, around mid-1.2800s.

On Thursday, the pair retreated from a two-week high, levels beyond the 1.2900 handle touched in the previous session and snapped five consecutive days of winning streak amid resurgent US Dollar demand.

Wednesday's release of the latest FOMC meeting minutes, which signalled broad support for another interest-rate hike in September, helped ease the recent USD bearish pressure. 

This coupled with fresh US-China trade tensions provided an additional boost to the greenback's relative safety against its British counterpart and prompted some selling around the major.

It would now be interesting to see if the current pull-back marks the end of the recent corrective rally or is utilized to initiate some near-term long positions as market participants brace for the publication of the first batch of technical notices for a no-deal Brexit. 

In absence of any major market moving economic releases, the USD price dynamics and any fresh Brexit-related news/developments might continue to act as key determinants of the pair's momentum on Thursday.

Technical levels to watch

Immediate support is pegged near the 1.2835-25 region, below which the pair is likely to break through the 1.2800 handle and head towards testing 1.2765-60 support area. On the upside, any meaningful up-move now seems to confront immediate strong hurdle near the 1.2900 handle, which if cleared might assist the pair to build on its recent recovery move.