UKX FTSE 100 Index

By Steve Goldstein, MarketWatch

The British pound rallied on Thursday after the leaders of the U.K. and Ireland said there could be a pathway to an orderly exit of Britain from the European Union.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Irish leader Leo Varadkar provided a status update on the issue after a private lunch meeting in northwest England. "Both continue to believe that a deal is in everybody's interest," they said in a joint statement. "They agreed that they could see a pathway to a possible deal." Read more on Johnson, Varadkar meeting (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/johnson-varadkar-say-they-could-have-a-pathway-to-brexit-deal-2019-10-10).

The British pound jumped to $1.2454 on Thursday versus $1.2206 a day earlier, a gain of 2% -- its biggest one-day percentage gain since March 13. It also rose strongly against the euro.

"Glimmers of hope are currently driving the currency. The recent meeting between Boris Johnson and Leo Varadkar could be the cornerstone for a further appreciation of the UK pound within the next few days," said Marc-Andre Fongern, FX and macro strategist at MAF Global Forex.

U.K. stocks meanwhile got a lift from President Donald Trump announcing he would have a meeting with China's vice premier, which was taken as a sign of progress in U.S.-China trade talks.

The FTSE 100 rose 0.3% Thursday to end at 7,186.36.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 10, 2019 15:47 ET (19:47 GMT)

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