GBP/JPY bumping into 144.00 as Brexit drags the Pound down

• Sterling traders are finding little reason to buy as economic data for the UK mixes poorly with Brexit angst.
• The safe-haven Yen remains a popular choice for broader markets.

The GBP/JPY pair is trading into the 144.00 major technical level as the Sterling falls against the wider market.

Brexit concerns are back to the top of the list for the Sterling, and with hopes high on negotiations to come soon but actual progress remaining thin, and the ri

sing odds of a hard Brexit scenario are undermining the GBP. 

The Sterling has fallen from July's highs of 149.30 as the GBP/JPY has backslid for three straight weeks, and is already gearing to make it a fourth, while slipping economic data for the UK piles onto an already-weakened Pound.

The UK's BRC Like-For-Like Retail Sales for July printed at just 0.5%, coming in far below the forecast 1.5%, and dropping below the previous period's 1.1%.

On the Japanese side, Overall Household Spending for the year to June clocked in at -1.2%, coming in better than the forecast -1.6%, and still a significant improvement over the previous period's -3.9%.

GBP/JPY levels to watch

With the pair declining for several weeks straight, support is holding thin at the 144.00 handle, while 2018's low sits nearby, close to 143.20. On the upside, declining resistance sits off of falling swing highs from above the 147.00 level, with last week's low sitting just above at 145.15.