Talking Points
- UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson says the UK will pay ‘not a penny more, not a penny less’ than necessary to leave the EU.
- However, he backs down from his previous comment that the EU could ‘go whistle’ on its demands for payment.
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The UK will pay “not a penny more, not a penny less” than its legal obligations to the European Union when it leaves the bloc, according to UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, talking on BBC Radio 4’s flagship Today program.
However, Johnson backed down from his previous comment that the EU could “go whistle” on its payment demands, saying this was merely a response to whether the UK would pay “100 billion Euros or Pounds” and not a refusal to pay anything at all.
“Some of the sums that I’ve seen seem to be very high. Of course, we will meet our obligations,” Johnson said.
The UK’s “divorce bill” has been one of the most contentious issues in the negotiations and Johnson’s earlier comment was seen at the time as a barrier to the “soft Brexit” that would be the most favorable outcome to the talks for the British Pound and other UK assets. A failure by the two sides to agree, or no Brexit at all, are both seen as less positive for the currency than a negotiated settlement.
In the markets, GBP/USD was firmer Friday after its steady decline so far this month.
Chart: GBP/USD Five-Minute Timeframe (August 25, 2017)
Markets
| Index / Exchange Rate | Change (Exchange Hours/GMT Session Rollover) | Market Close/Last |
|---|---|---|
| FTSE 100 | +0.41% | 7,437 |
| DAX | +0.42% | 12,232 |
| GBP/USD | +0.22% | 1.2829 |
| EUR/USD | +0.04% | 1.1805 |
| EUR/GBP | -0.15% | 0.9204 |
Upcoming UK/EU Event Risk
| Events | Date, Time (GMT) | Forecast | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK Nationwide House Prices n.s.a. (YoY) (Aug) | Aug 28 | - | 2.9% |
| UK Nationwide House Prices s.a. (MoM) (Aug) | Aug 28 | - | 0.3% |
| Euro-Zone M3 s.a. (YoY) (Jul) | Aug 28, 0800 | - | 5.0% |
--- Written by Martin Essex, Analyst and Editor
To contact Martin, email him at martin.essex@ig.com
Follow Martin on Twitter @MartinSEssex
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