While it has now lost some momentum, the Pound Sterling had earlier struck an 11-week peak during overnight trading on renewed optimism that a no-deal Brexit can be avoided. The latest attempt by Parliamentary lawmakers to find an acceptable alternative seems to have garnered the backing of lawmakers, which improved sentiment favorably and had traders looking to add the Pound back into their portfolios. Given the hopeful sentiment, the Pound has gained nearly 2.3% in the month of January, and signals from derivative markets are suggesting that there is likely to be more backing for the Pound in the days ahead.
As reported at 11:35 am (GMT) in London, the GBP/USD was trading at $1.3028, down 0.38% and well away from the session peak of $1.3094, while the low was recorded at $1.3020. The EUR/GBP was trading at 0.8705 Pence, a gain of 0.06% and moving away from the session low of 0.86889 Pence while the high was recorded at 0.87253 Pence.
Mario Draghi Presser Eyed
In the Eurozone, markets are awaiting the European Central Bank monetary policy decision. While analysts have predicted that the ECB will leave lending and deposit rates at the current levels, there will be much more interest in the press conference that will follow the announcement. Market players want to know whether Mario Draghi, the current head of the ECB, will finally acknowledge the mounting risks to Eurozone growth. In December's meeting, Draghi had said that while risks were present, they were essentially balanced; his take on those threats to the Eurozone's economic outlook and the impact on the Euro is of the utmost concern to FX traders.