By Ian McConnell

THE pound remained under pressure on the foreign exchanges yesterday as fears of a no-deal exit by the UK from the European single market weighed.

Sterling, which traded below $1.30 during much of yesterday’s session and hit an intra-day low of around $1.2882, was at $1.3013 at 5pm, down from a close of $1.3024 in London on Tuesday.

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The pound is far adrift of the near-$1.50 levels at which it traded on June 23, 2016, ahead of the EU referendum result.

Sterling also lost ground against the euro yesterday. The euro was, at 5pm, trading around 90.8p, up from a Tuesday close of 90.47p.

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The UK and European Union have this week resumed talks on their future relationship. With less than four months until the end of the Brexit transition period, major differences remain, including on state aid and fisheries.