The Pound Sterling edged higher against the US Dollar in Thursday trading in London after the Prime Minister received a much needed show of support from within her own Conservative Party. That helped to tamp down concerns of a challenge to her leadership role in light of her relatively unpopular Brexit strategy. Just yesterday, the GBP/USD hit a 7-week trough on those concerns but the absence of vocal opposition last night helped to back off the threat of a no-confidence vote.
As reported at 11:04 am (BST) in London, the GBP/USD was trading higher at $1.29, up 0.17% and off the session peak of $1.2920 while the low was recorded at $1.2879. The EUR/GBP is trading at 0.8842 Pence, down 0.03%; the pair has ranged from a trough of 0.88318 Pence to a peak of 0.88580 Pence.
Irish Border Issue Still Worrisome
Though markets took some comfort in yesterday's outcome, in the longer term, analysts say there are still grave doubts that Theresa May will be able to push through a favorable agreement. Still, they point out, the largest sticking point is the trade plan for the borders which separate Northern Ireland and Ireland, the former a British province and the latter an EU member state. Failure to reach an agreement on the Irish border raises the likelihood of a hard Brexit.