Sterling Trims Gains As May Denies Plans to Stay in Customs Union

The Great Britain pound rallied today amid reports that the United Kingdom seeks to remain in the customs union after it leaves the European Union. The currency retreated a bit after Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May denied such plans, though the sterling remained firmly above the opening level.

Earlier today, The Telegraph reported that Britain will stay in the customs union beyond 2021. That resulted in a rally of the pound.

Yet May disproved such claims, saying:

No. The United Kingdom will be leaving the customs union as we’re leaving the European Union. Of course, we will be negotiating future customs arrangements with the European Union and I’ve set three objectives.

The EU and the UK continued to negotiate about a backstop plan that would allow to avoid a hard border with Northern Ireland.

Britain’s economic docket was empty today. Yesterday, Conference Board released UK leading indicators, showing a drop by 0.2% in March that followed a 0.3% decline in February.

GBP/USD rose from 1.3475 to 1.3521 as of 17:30 GMT today but retreated from the daily high of 1.3569. EUR/GBP declined from 0.8746 to 0.8728, while its daily low was at 0.8712. GBP/JPY jumped from 148.83 to 149.68.

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