EUR/GBP jumps to 5-day highs near 0.86 on latest Brexit headlines

• Pound sterling comes under heavy selling pressure on latest Brexit headlines.
• UK House Speaker says there won't be a third vote on the deal if it's the same.
• Trade surplus widens more than expected in the eurozone.

The EUR/GBP pair advanced to its highest level in five days at 0.8595 in the last hour as the GBP came under heavy selling pressure following the latest developments surrounding the third meaningful vote on Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit deal. As of writing, the pair was trading at 0.8580, rising 0.7% on a daily basis.

Addressing the House of Commons, Speaker John Simon Bercow explained that lawmakers had expressed concerns about being asked to vote on PM May's Brexit deal more than once and said that if the deal that the PM brings is the same as the previous one, there won't be another meaningful vote.

This development also makes it difficult for the UK to ask for an extension to Article 50 as the EU made it clear that they will only agree to a Brexit delay if PM May gets the support of the majority of the House on her deal. In fact, “Why should the EU27 even consider a Brexit extension this week, if the UK parliament vote on the deal is cancelled?” Verhofstadt told the Evening Standard in an interview earlier today. “I will keep saying this; it is time for country to come before party. A minority of Right-wing populists cannot be allowed to drive European citizens and businesses off a cliff,” Verhofstadt added.

Meanwhile, the Eurostat today reported that the trade surplus (seasonally adjusted) rose to €17 billion in January from €16 billion in December and beat the market expectation of €13.2 billion.

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