United Kingdom Pound / United States Dollar

Within knowledgeable circles, the GBP/USD currency pair is known as the “Cable.” The name is derived from the state of trade in the 1800s that saw the transatlantic telegraph service revolutionize international communications. The earliest FOREX traders would relay messages between New York and London via a physical cable that stretched along the ocean floor between the two nations. These two currencies are some of the most actively traded and have formed the cornerstone of global FOREX trading since the very beginning. The narrow bid-ask spreads, volume and volatility all contribute to why trading GBP/USD is popular. The US is the world's biggest economy, and the UK is the fifth biggest, making the GBP/USD rate one of the most reliable ways to trade on international economic activity.