Pound Stumbles amid Rising Uncertainty over Brexit ahead of Crucial Vote

GBP

The British pound kicked-off the week on a gap lower against other major currencies ahead of the meaningful vote tomorrow. The government is widely expected to lose the approval of the House of Commons on the proposed deal, especially that May has failed to earn some changes to her deal from the European Union. The British foreign minister stated on Sunday that the Brexit could be reversed if lawmakers reject the government's deal. The latest developments weighed heavily on the pound where the GBPUSD tumbled to a three-week low of $1.2960, and the EURGBP rose to a two-week high of 0.8662. 

USD

The dollar index which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies drifted lower to a low of 97.29. The greenback weakened slightly following February's mixed jobs report. The report showed that the US economy created only 20 thousand jobs in February, the lowest since September 2017, while the unemployment rate declined to 3.8% with participation rate holding at 63.2%, and the wage growth jumped to 3.4% year on year. The USDCHF dropped to a low of 1.00699, and the EURUSD rose to a high of $1.1250.

Metals

Metals prices surged as the dollar weakened following the jobs report. The price of a gold ounce climbed to a ten-day high of $1301, the silver ounce jumped to a high of $15.33, and palladium hovered above $1500.

Oil

Oil prices soared on reports that OPEC+ supply cuts could be extended to June. The Saudi oil minister Khalid al-Falih stated that the ongoing supply cuts are unlikely to end before June. OPEC+ will meet in Vienna on 17th and 18th of April to discuss the current market conditions. The West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose to a high of $56.77, and Brent futures surged to a high of $66.58.

Major Economic Events

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