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LONDON, Dec.20 (Reuters) – The pound fell 0.82% on Sunday after Britain imposed tough new restrictions to stem a new strain of rapidly spreading coronavirus and on the lack of progress towards a Brexit deal.
London and the south-east of England could remain under tighter restrictions for some time to stem the new strain of coronavirus, the British Minister of Health said, while several European countries have started to close their doors to UK travelers,
In addition, during the Brexit trade talks on Sunday, Britain insisted the European Union should clear the way for a new post-Brexit trade pact, which drew a swift response from the European Union. the negotiator of the bloc defending the Union’s right to protect its interests.
The British pound fell 0.82% to $ 1.3417 against the dollar in 1925 GMT.
“It’s hard to dissociate the lack of progress on Brexit from the panic over the new strain of coronovirus – but both are disappointing and it makes sense for the pound to trade lower,” the ING strategist said Antoine Bouvet.
“I expect (UK) gilts to open higher tomorrow on demand for safe assets,” he said, referring to UK government bonds.
UK gilt yields – which move inversely to price – edged down on Sunday, with the short-term two-year gilt yield falling one basis point to -0.09%.
Gilts will begin to trade in earnest during weekday market hours, when futures on gilt are also open for trading. (Reporting by Abhinav Ramnarayan; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Jane Merriman)
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