GBP/USD turned lower after the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 172,000 May payroll gains and a 4.3% unemployment rate, reversing sterling’s earlier weekly-gain setup.

Sterling reversed course on Friday after stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs data lifted the dollar and knocked GBP/USD lower intraday.

Reuters had earlier reported that the pound was edging higher and was set for a third straight weekly gain ahead of the May U.S. employment report. That setup changed after the Bureau of Labor Statistics said nonfarm payrolls rose by 172,000 in May and the unemployment rate held at 4.3%.

The stronger labor-market reading supported expectations that the Federal Reserve could keep policy tighter for longer, helping the dollar firm against major peers. Later Reuters coverage said GBP/USD fell to around 1.34 and that sterling was on track for a modest weekly loss.

The move left the currency pair with a clear intraday reversal from the earlier tone of the session, as markets digested both the payroll surprise and the likely implications for U.S. interest-rate expectations.

Traders will now watch whether the dollar’s post-data gains hold into the close and whether sterling can recover enough to challenge the weekly-loss view.

Revision note

Updated to reflect post-payrolls reversal and weekly-loss framing.