The pound is slightly weaker against the dollar and the euro this morning, possibly due to nervousness surrounding Brexit talks. There is pressure to secure a deal by the EU summit on November 19, in order for it to be ratified before the end of the transition period. There has been some speculation, however, that this November deadline could be pushed back.
Final hurdles remain and its thought that the biggest challenge could be agreeing on the ‘level playing field’ provisions for businesses.
GDP data for the UK was released this morning, showing that Britain’s gross domestic product shrank by 9.6% year-on-year in the third quarter of 2020. However, in the three months to September, UK GDP expanded 15.5%, partly recovering from the previous fall of 19.8%. This shows a partial bounce back from recession, although the economy hasn’t completely recovered from the damage done by the pandemic.
