Investing.com - The pound slid lower against the U.S. dollar on Friday, after the release of higher-than expected U.K. public sector borrowing data, while demand for the greenback remained broadly supported.
GBP/USD hit 1.5634 during European morning trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.5654, shedding 0.22%.
Cable was likely to find support at 1.5588, Wednesday's low and a 14-month low and resistance at 1.5782, the high of November 13.
In a report, the U.K. Office for National Statistic said that public sector net borrowing rose by £7.05 billion in October, after a revised increase of £10.57 billion the previous month.
Analysts had expected public sector net borrowing to rise by £6.90 billion.
The pound had found support on Thursday after data showed that U.K. retail sales rebounded by a stronger than forecast 0.8% in October after a 0.4% drop the previous month.
Meanwhile, the dollar remained supported after the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said on Thursday that its manufacturing index jumped to a 21-year high of 40.8 this month from 20.7 in October.
Data also showed that U.S. sales of previously owned homes rose to a 13-month high in October.
However, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending November 15 decreased by a less-than-expected 2,000 to 291,000 from the previous week's revised total of 293,000.
The dollar also continued to be underpinned after the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest meeting indicated that officials believe the economic recovery is strong enough to withstand external threats to growth, but offered little additional clarity about when rates could start to rise.
Sterling was higher against the euro, with EUR/GBP retreating 0.43% to 0.7956.
The euro came under pressure after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi reiterated on Friday that the central bank is prepared to act if low inflation persists.
Draghi also warned about weak growth in the euro zone, saying that no improvements are expected in the coming months.
The ECB head was speaking at the 24th European Banking Congress "Reshaping Europe," in Frankfurt.