EU's Barnier: Right now we have no basis for reaching a deal

Speaking in Berlin on Monday, European Union (EU) Chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said that they had no basis for reaching a deal with the United Kingdom right now and added that it was hard to see how they could arrive at a solution that fulfils all the objectives of the backstop, per Reuters.  

"We can't pick and choose when it comes to protecting the single market and consumers," Barnier noted. "The UK's proposals on the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland are unacceptable."

The GBP/USD pair pushed lower on these comments and is now losing 0.4% on the day at 1.2427.