Pound Surges After U.K., EU Agree On New Brexit Accord
October 17 2019 - 3:37AM
RTTF2
The pound rallied against its key counterparts in the European
session on Thursday, after the U.K. and the European Union
concluded a new Brexit deal following days of intense negotiations,
as EU leaders gather in Brussels.
The European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the
accord was "fair and balanced" and he would recommend the 27 EU
member states to back it at the summit.
The deal places Northern Ireland in the UK's customs territory,
while avoiding the need for a customs border between Ireland and
Northern Ireland.
The UK Parliament will vote on the revised Brexit deal at an
extraordinary sitting on Saturday.
But the Northern Irish party said they could not back the deal,
due to gaps in customs and consent issues, as well as sales tax
arrangements.
Data from the Office for National Statistics showed that UK
retail sales remained flat in September.
Retail sales volume, including auto fuel, was unchanged from the
previous month, following a 0.3 percent drop in August. Sales were
forecast to fall 0.2 percent.
Survey data from the Bank of England showed that UK lenders
expect the availability loans to the corporate sector to fall in
the next three months to end-November, at the fastest rate since
early 2008.
Bank of England expects the availability of credit provided to
the corporate sector to fall 13.5 percent in the next three months,
which is the worst decline since the first quarter of 2008.
The currency weakened in the Asian session as Northern Ireland's
Democratic Unionist Party rejected its backing of Boris Johnson's
current Brexit plan in its current form.
"As things stand, we could not support what is being suggested
on customs and consent issues, and there is a lack of clarity on
VAT (value-added tax)," the DUP said in a brief statement.
The pound neared the key 1.30 level against the greenback,
surging 1.9 percent to a 5-month peak of 1.2990. That follows a
drop to 1.2749 at 1:45 am ET. The pound had ended yesterday's
trading session at 1.2828 against the greenback. The currency is
likely to locate resistance around the 1.32 region, if it rallies
again.
The pound soared 1.8 percent to near a 5-month high of 1.2893
against the franc, after falling as low as 1.2667 at 2:30 am ET.
The pound was trading at 1.2760 per franc at yesterday's close.
Further upward trading may see the pound challenging resistance
around the 1.30 area.
After a brief drop to 138.62 against the Japanese yen at 1:45 am
ET, the pound rallied 2 percent on the news, touching nearly a
5-month high of 141.51. At Wednesday's trading close, the pair was
quoted at 139.52. Extension of the pound's uptrend may lead it to a
resistance around the 143.00 region.
The pound was up by 1.2 percent at 0.8574 against the euro, its
biggest since May 6. The rally in currency came after a fall to
0.8682 at 1:45 am ET. The euro-pound pair was worth 0.8628 at
Wednesday's close. Next near term resistance for the pound could be
possibly seen around the 0.84 level.
In today's events, U.S. weekly jobless claims for the week ended
October 12, building permits, housing starts and industrial
production, all for September, will be featured in the New York
session.
Sterling vs US Dollar (FX:GBPUSD)
Forex Chart
From Apr 2024 to May 2024
Sterling vs US Dollar (FX:GBPUSD)
Forex Chart
From May 2023 to May 2024