UK's Frost: Substantial areas of disagreement with EU remain

"We will continue energetically to seek an agreement with the EU but we must face the possibility that one will not be reached," the UK's chief Brexit negotiator David Frost said on Thursday.

Additional takeaways

"Unfortunately, it's clear that we will not reach in July the early understanding of the principles underlying any agreement."

"Substantial areas of disagreement remain."

"Considerable gaps remain in the most difficult areas, that is, the so-called level playing field and on fisheries."

"My assessment is that agreement can still be reached in September."

Market reaction

The GBP/USD pair edged lower on these comments and was last seen losing 0.18% on the day at 1.2709.