At 4.30 am ET Friday, the Office for National Statistics releases UK retail sales for March. Sales are forecast to drop 0.5 percent on month, in contrast to a 1.4 percent rise in February.

Ahead of the data, the pound pared its early gains against its major rivals.

The pound was worth 1.2809 against the greenback, 139.87 against the yen, 0.8372 against the euro and 1.2780 against the franc as of 4:25 am ET.

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