ICM: Pound Tumbles on Brexit Deal Concerns

ICM, the leading London-based FX and CFDs provider, reported that the British pound opened on a gap lower as negotiators failed to reach a deal during the weekend and paused talks until Wednesday's European Summit.

The British pound retreated from a three-week high of $1.3257 on Friday, weighed down by Brexit worries. The European Union negotiator Michel Barnier stated last week that a deal is within reach which supported the cable against peers. However, Brexit secretary Dominic Raab and the EU negotiator Michel Barnier failed to reach an agreement on Sunday as the Irish border issue was unresolved. The European leaders will meet on Wednesday in Brussels and will hear from Prime Minister Theresa May and decide whether a withdrawal agreement is possible. On the other hand, several economic indicators from the United Kingdom are due this week.

ICM highlighted that the dollar index which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies rebounded from a two-week low of 94.95 to settle higher at 95.23. Last week, the dollar weakened on soft inflation data and Trump's remarks on the Fed's interest rate path. Market participants await the September retail sales figures today. The U.S. 10-year treasury yields held steady at 3.15%.

Major U.S. indices rebounded slightly on Friday, but they logged the worst weekly performance since March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 4.2% to 25339, the S&P500 fell 4.1% to 2767, and the Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled by 3.7% to 7496. Investors will remain cautious as the bloodbath could be resumed as long as Treasury yields are near the highs and poised for new highs.

Gold prices remain supported near a ten-week high as investors rushed to the safe haven asset. As per ICM trading platform, the gold ounce retraced lower to $1216 and bounced back up during the Asian session to trade at a high of $1224. Also, the silver ounce traded higher at $14.63.

Oil prices kicked-off the week higher, supported by the tension between Saudi Arabia and the United States following the disappearance/death of the Saudi critic and Journalist Jamal Khashoggi. As per ICM trading platform, the West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded at a high of $72.68, and the Brent crude futures traded at a high of $81.89.

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