Forex - GBP/USD remains moderately lower in thin trade

The pound remained moderately lower against the U.S. dollar in thin trade on Monday, as trade volumes remained limited with U.K. markets closed for a national holiday, and as strong U.S. service sector data did little to support the greenback.

Cable was likely to find support at 1.6807, the low of April 30 and resistance at 1.6922, the high of May 1 and a five-year high.GBP/USD hit 1.6853 during U.S. morning trade, the pair's lowest since May 2; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.6863, edging down 0.08%.

In a report, the Institute of Supply Management said its non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to a five-month high of 55.2 in April, from a reading of 53.1 in March, compared to expectations for a rise to 54.1.

The data came after official data on Friday showed that the U.S. economy added 288,000 jobs in April, well above expectations for jobs growth of 210,000, while the unemployment rate dropped to a five-and-a-half year low of 6.3%.

But the dollar remained under pressure, as the report also showed that the labor force participation rate, which measures the proportion of people either working or looking for work, fell and wage growth weakened.

Meanwhile, investors remained cautious after clashes broke out in at six cities in eastern Ukraine over the weekend while pro-Russian forces overran a police station in Odessa, freeing close to 70 activists held there.

The events came after the death of 46 people on Friday, marking the bloodiest day since the ousting of Viktor Yanukovich from the Ukrainian presidency in February.

Sterling was lower against the euro, with EUR/GBP edging up 0.12% to 0.8229.

The single currency shrugged off earlier data showing that the Sentix index of euro zone investor confidence deteriorated unexpectedly this month, falling to 12.8 from a reading of 14.1 in April. Analysts had forecast an increase to 14.2.

A separate report showed that producer prices in the euro zone fell 0.2% in March from a month earlier, and were down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Meanwhile, the European Commission said it expects the region’s economy to continue to recover through 2015, but warned that persistently low levels of inflation and geopolitical tensions with Russia could threaten the recovery.