Barnier's Comments Send Sterling Higher

GBP

The British pound rallied against rivals supported by the positive sentiment on hopes of orderly Brexit. The recent developments which took place late last week increased the chances of reaching a deal, which could end the Brexit saga with less damage to the United Kingdom. Earlier today, the Sterling received another boost as the Chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier declared that a deal is still possible this week. On the data front, market participants await the jobs report for further hints about the performance of the labor market. The GBPUSD rose to a high of $1.2697, the GBPJPY climbed to 137.58, and the EURGBP dipped to a fresh five-month low of 0.8689.

USD

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies, settled marginally higher at 98.43 as investors await fresh fundamental drivers. Market participants are looking forward to more details on the trade truce reached between China and the United States last week to forecast its effect on the Fed's next move, which would help them position properly. The US 10-year yields drifted slightly lower to 1.679%, the USDJPY advanced to 108.40, and the EURUSD hovered around $1.1030.

Metals

Gold prices continued to trade in a ten dollars range awaiting fresh drivers. The trade truce had a quite significant impact on investors' demand for safe assets, which sent gold tumbled to a two-week low of 1474 on Friday. The price of a gold ounce is currently trading near $1490, the price of a silver ounce is hovering near $17.60, while palladium soared to a fresh high of $1727.

Oil

Oil prices extended losses on soft Chinese economic data. The recent data coming out from China raised investors' woes over the global economic outlook, which was negatively affected by the ongoing trade war between China and the United States. The West Texas Intermediate crude futures tumbled to $52.76, and Brent futures dropped to $58.49.

Major Economic Events

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