At 2.00 am ET Friday, the Office for National Statistics releases UK retail sales data for April. Sales are forecast to fall 0.2 percent on a monthly basis, slower than the 1.4 percent decrease posted in March.

Ahead of the data, the pound held steady against its major rivals.

The pound was worth 159.35 against the yen, 1.2104 against the franc, 0.8489 against the euro and 1.2475 against the greenback as of 1:55 am ET.

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