The British Pound Sterling inched towards a three-month high against the euro on Thursday, December 1, after Brexit minister David Davis said Britain would consider making payments to the EU budget in return for access to EU markets, The Telegraph reports.
Coming off its best month since 2009, the pound climbed by as much as 1.33pc against the euro to €1.1948. It hit a two-month high against the greenback, rising by as much as 1.58pc to $1.2696, as Davis’s comments spurred hopes of a ‘soft’ Brexit.
When asked by Labour MP Wayne David if the government would consider making a contribution “in any form” for access to the single market, Davis said: “The major criterion here is that we get the best possible access for goods and services to the European market.”
Brexit Secretary David Davis hints at EU market access Watch | Brexit Secretary David Davis hints at EU market access
Eurogroup head Jeroen Dijsselbloem also told the Times of Malta in an interview that Britain should be able to secure deals to continue trading in the single market after Brexit – at a price.
Anthony Cheung, of Amplify Trading, said: “This seems to reflect a slight concession from the ‘hard Brexit’ responses that have defined both sides of the negotiations so far.”
Although the pound surrendered the bulk of its gains in afternoon trading, it still managed to record its biggest daily rise against the Bank of England’s trade-weighted sterling index, since early November.
