Pound sterling is down today against the euro currency, compared to its value before the weekend.
The GBP now converts to €1.1326, according to figures at 7:15am today.
Before the weekend, sterling converted to €1.351 on Friday – this was a two week high.
However, the downwards movement coincides with today reaching the December 4 deadline for a revised Brexit bill imposed by President of the European Council Donald Tusk.
The deadline came as a response to EU demands for a £50bn “divorce bill”, a payment made to settle the UK’s accounts upon leaving the organisation.
There is currently speculation a deal will be reached for a lower figure, closer to £40 billion.
The Prime Minister Theresa May is due to meet with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker today to make progress with the negotiations.
Laura Parsons, currency analyst at TorFX, said the pound may fall further still, as Brexit discussions continue this week.
“After gaining around two cents last week, the GBP/EUR exchange rate fell before the weekend on a mix of profit taking and concerns surrounding the Irish border issue.”
“The 4th December deadline imposed by EU officials has now arrived,” she added.
Laura anticipated consequences for the GBP currency “if they don’t feel Britain has made enough progress on key issues (including the divorce bill and the rights of EU citizens) to move on to trade talks.”
“The pound could slide dramatically against the euro and the other major currencies.”
However, there are some more positive signs for the pound coming from within the UK.
For instance, there is promising data coming from the manufacturing industry – a key player in the UK economic scene.
Last Friday saw the strongest growth in the manufacturing sector in four year, with the construction purchasing managers’ index (PMI) announcement, which reflects the economic health of this sector.
“Sterling could push higher still later today if the UK’s manufacturing PMI shows the improvement in output forecast,” said Laura.
