FTSE 100 LIVE: Pound soars as investors relax over Brexit talks edging towards no deal

The pound suffered badly against the dollar when coronavirus hit the global markets in March. British Sterling’s highest total this year is now just above $1.31.

It comes as the FT has reported the exchange-rate shifts shows the pound now faces “no big risks” in the next six months.

This will be the time of the December 31 exit from the EU’s single market and customs union.

“The risks priced into options markets are surprisingly moderate considering we are approaching a crunch point,” said David Riley, chief investment strategist at BlueBay Asset Management.

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6.07am update: China’s Xi warns “period of turbulent change” as external risks rise

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned that the world’s second-biggest economy is facing a period of ‘turbulent change’ and that rising external markets risk required policymakers to increasingly rely on domestic demand to spur growth.

Xi, chairing a seminar on Monday with a group of policy advisors and state economists, discussed the country’s mid- to long-term economic trends in preparation for the drafting of the 14th Five-year plan.

The five-yearly economic blueprint is expected to be unveiled in the annual parliament meeting next year, and Xi said China must be prepared for “a period of turbulent change” as the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated protectionism, hammered the world economy and disrupted supply chains.

“In the coming period, we will face more and more headwinds in the external environment, and we must be prepared to deal with a series of new risks and challenges,” he said, according to comments released by state news agency Xinhua late Monday night.

Xi said the domestic market will “dominate the national economic cycle” in the future, but vowed to further open up China’s economy.

source: express.co.uk