LONDON MARKETS: British Pound Hovers Around $1.29 As Attention Turns To EU And Possible Brexit Extension
October 24 2019 - 8:36AM
Dow Jones News
By Steve Goldstein, MarketWatch
The British pound hovered around a key technical level as
markets awaited the European Union's decision on whether to grant
an extension to the U.K. to leaving the bloc.
The pound traded just south of $1.29 as the Times reported the
EU will grant a second extension on Friday. The issue is the length
of the extension, with the newspaper saying French President
Emmanuel Macron only wants a two-week extension
(https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/boris-johnson-poised-for-election-call-as-eu-wrangles-over-brexit-extension-qvr2q5x9b),
and not until Jan. 31 as many had thought.
Meanwhile, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson could make a third
attempt to trigger a general election.
The FTSE 100 meanwhile leaped 1.02% to 7334.69, buoyed in
particular by stronger-than-forecast earnings from AstraZeneca
(AZN.LN) (AZN.LN) , which rose 2.8%.
Breadth was overwhelmingly positive on the London Stock
Exchange, with advancers outnumbering decliners 1165 to 701.
The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.LN) (RBS.LN) struggled, falling
2.4% as the bank reported a swing to a third-quarter loss due to a
provision to cover payment protection insurance costs
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/royal-bank-of-scotland-swings-to-loss-after-higher-ppi-costs-2019-10-24).
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 24, 2019 08:21 ET (12:21 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Royal Bank of Scotland (NYSE:RBS)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Royal Bank of Scotland (NYSE:RBS)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024