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Investing.com - The pound rose against the dollar on Monday after industry data revealed pending home sales in the U.S. dropped in June, defying market calls for a gain.
In U.S. trading on Monday, GBP/USD was trading up 0.08% at 1.6990 up from a session low of 1.6972 and off a high of 1.7001.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.6962, Friday's low, and resistance at 1.7095, Wednesday's high.
The dollar softened on Monday after the National Association of Realtors reported that U.S. pending home sales fell 1.1% in June, disappointing expectations for a 0.5% gain.
"Activity is notably higher than earlier this year as prices have moderated and inventory levels have improved," NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement.
"However, supply shortages still exist in parts of the country, wages are flat, and tight credit conditions are deterring a higher number of potential buyers from fully taking advantage of lower interest rates."
The data sent investors selling the greenback for profits ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy statement on Wednesday and the July jobs report due out on Friday.
The dollar firmed last week on upbeat durable goods, weekly jobless claims and new home sales reports, though Monday's home sales data prompted investors to take a breather with the U.S. currency.
Investors were also awaiting final data on U.S. second-quarter growth on Wednesday.
Meanwhile across the Atlantic, the pound continued to see support after preliminary data on Friday revealed that the gross domestic product rose 0.8% in the second quarter, in line with market expectations, which gave the pound some support.
Elsewhere, sterling was flat against the euro, with EUR/GBP down 0.01% at 0.7911, and up against the yen, with GBP/JPY up 0.08% at 173.00.
On Tuesday, the U.S. is to publish reports on house price inflation and consumer confidence.
The U.K. is to release data on net lending.