LONDON MARKETS: British Pound Surges 2% After Leaders Say There Could Be Brexit 'pathway'
October 10 2019 - 4:02PM
Dow Jones News
By Steve Goldstein, MarketWatch
The British pound rallied on Thursday after the leaders of the
U.K. and Ireland said there could be a pathway to an orderly exit
of Britain from the European Union.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Irish leader Leo
Varadkar provided a status update on the issue after a private
lunch meeting in northwest England. "Both continue to believe that
a deal is in everybody's interest," they said in a joint statement.
"They agreed that they could see a pathway to a possible deal."
Read more on Johnson, Varadkar meeting
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/johnson-varadkar-say-they-could-have-a-pathway-to-brexit-deal-2019-10-10).
The British pound jumped to $1.2454 on Thursday versus $1.2206 a
day earlier, a gain of 2% -- its biggest one-day percentage gain
since March 13. It also rose strongly against the euro.
"Glimmers of hope are currently driving the currency. The recent
meeting between Boris Johnson and Leo Varadkar could be the
cornerstone for a further appreciation of the UK pound within the
next few days," said Marc-Andre Fongern, FX and macro strategist at
MAF Global Forex.
U.K. stocks meanwhile got a lift from President Donald Trump
announcing he would have a meeting with China's vice premier, which
was taken as a sign of progress in U.S.-China trade talks.
The FTSE 100 rose 0.3% Thursday to end at 7,186.36.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 10, 2019 15:47 ET (19:47 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
FTSE 100
Index Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
FTSE 100
Index Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024