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GBP/USD explained: why "cable" moves faster than the euro

Traders call GBP/USD "cable", after the telegraph line under the Atlantic that once sent its price from London to New York. It's still a fast message today.

Market guide · 5-minute read · Updated 2026-10-21

At a glance

What moves it

• The Bank of England (BoE). Its rate committee meets 8 times a year. Decisions come out at noon UK time, which is usually 7:00 am ET.
• UK inflation. UK CPI is released at 7 am UK time, usually 2:00 am ET. That's the middle of the night for US traders.
• UK jobs and wage data, also early in the UK morning.
• The US side. The Fed, US CPI and the jobs report move cable just as hard as the euro pairs.
• Politics and budgets. The pound reacts strongly to UK government news. In September 2022, after a surprise UK budget plan, it fell to its lowest level ever against the dollar.

When it's busiest

The pound is a London currency. It often gets moving right at the London open, around 3 am ET. The busiest stretch is about 8 am to noon ET, when New York joins.

In the Asian session it's often thin. In October 2016 the pound dropped sharply within minutes during Asian hours, a well-known "flash crash". Thin hours can do strange things.

The UK and US change their clocks on different weekends in spring and autumn. For a few weeks the 7 am ET BoE time becomes 8 am ET. Check the market hours tool in those weeks.

Its personality

• Bigger swings than EUR/USD. On a normal day it often travels further. Stops usually need more room.
• Sharp reactions to news. UK headlines can move it fast, then it settles.
• Clean trends on the bigger charts. When the rate story changes, cable can trend for weeks.
• A little more cost. The Spread is small, but often a bit wider than EUR/USD's.

Reading it with our method

1. Daily chart first. Mark the last places price turned around. Decide the direction before you look for any trade.
2. Give the levels room. Cable likes to poke past a level with a tail and then snap back. Wait for a candle body to close past it before you call it broken.
3. Stop first, size second. A wider stop is fine. You just trade a smaller size so the money at risk stays the same, around 1%.
4. Check the calendar for BoE days, UK CPI and US 8:30 am ET news.

Work your size out with the lot size calculator. Our guide on how to set a stop loss shows where the stop goes.

Common mistakes

• Copying a EUR/USD stop. A stop that fits the euro's normal wiggle can be too tight here. Fit the stop to this chart, then shrink the size.
• Trading the 2 am ET number half-asleep. If you can't watch it, don't hold through it. Nobody needs to trade UK CPI.
• Chasing the London open. The first hour can fake one way, then turn. Let a body close confirm it.
• Forgetting the US half. Cable can move on a Fed day even if the UK is quiet.

Questions