JPMorgan now expects a Brexit deal to be struck

LONDON (Reuters) - Investment bank JPMorgan said on Friday it now expected Britain and the European Union to reach a Brexit deal following an upbeat meeting on Thursday between Britain and Ireland's leaders.

“This changes everything - we now expect a deal,” one of the bank's key Brexit watchers Malcolm Barr wrote in a note.

While the exact details remain scant for the time being: “if our understanding of the situation is correct, a ”solution“ to the Irish border problem which could ultimately be acceptable to all parties (if rather inelegant) has been identified.”

The bank now sees a 50% chance of a withdrawal agreement being struck with a “modified/time-limited” Irish backstop. It had previously put the likelihood at just 5%.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Irish counterpart Leo Varadkar had said they saw “a pathway to a possible deal”.