EU chiefs sign Brexit deal ahead of parliamentary vote
Brussels' two top officials, the presidents of the European Commission and the European Council, signed off on Britain's EU divorce agreement Friday.
With Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel's formal endorsement, the text will now go to the European Parliament on Wednesday, January 29 for ratification.
On Thursday, diplomats from the EU member states will approve the deal in writing. Then, on Friday, January 31, Britain spends its last day in the EU before leaving the bloc at 2300 GMT as clocks strike midnight in Brussels.
Then, on Thursday, diplomats from the EU member states will approve the deal in writing, ensuring Britain's orderly departure at 2300 GMT Friday as clocks tick into Saturday in Brussels.
"Charles Michel and I have just signed the Agreement on the Withdrawal of the UK from the EU, opening the way for its ratification by the European Parliament," Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen tweeted.
In a separate tweet, Michel said: "Things will inevitably change but our friendship will remain. We start a new chapter as partners and allies."
And he added, in French: "I'm keen to write this new page together."
Official photographs of the official signing ceremony, conducted before dawn in the European Council's headquarters in Brussels, showed chief EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier looking on. British voters backed leaving the European Union in a June 2016 referendum, and after lengthy negotiations and several delays Prime Minister Boris Johnson's new government plans to "get Brexit done" next week.
Queen Elizabeth II gave her formal assent to the British withdrawal legislation on Thursday and the European Union is now expected to complete the final formalities in the coming days.
Briatin will the leave the institutions of the union, reducing it to 27 member member states, but the withdrawal agreement provides for an 11month transition period until the end of the year. During this time, Britain and the rest of the bloc will continue to apply the same rules of business to avoid economic disruption while officials try to negotiate a broader trade deal. Tokyo stocks opened higher on Monday, with investor sentiment buoyed by fresh record-setting advances on Wall Street and likely to continue throughout the week, according to analysts.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.19 percent or 46.64 points to 24,087.90 in early trade while the broader Topix index was up 0.35 percent or 6.05 points at 1,741.49.
"Japanese stocks are expected to stay firm this week thanks to a positive environment," Okasan Online Securities said in a commentary, adding that bullish US stocks were driving Tokyo's strength.
Wall Street stocks again finished at records on Friday on the back of a USChina trade deal signed last week, robust US economic data and mostly solid corporate earnings.
The trade agreement was skewed in favour of Washington, noted Chief market strategist Masayuki Kubota at Rakuten Securities, spawning speculation that China might not to be able to keep its promises.
The next stage of US-China trade talks will be tougher as China is unlikely to budge further, he said.
"Nonetheless, the flawed 'phaseone agreement' is a fair wind for the global economy over a short period," Kubota added.
"We believe stock prices will continue to be higher globally in the first half of 2020 with easing in US-China tensions leading to expectations for a recovery in the world economy," he said in a note.
The dollar held steady, trading at 110.18 yen against 110.12 yen in New York on Friday afternoon.
The Bank of Japan starts a two-day policy meeting Monday but is widely expected to stand pat.
In individual stocks trade, ANA Holdings rose 0.85 percent to 3,671 yen after the Nikkei business daily reported All Nippon Airways is entering a comprehensive tie-up with Singapore Airlines to join forces to fend off competition in an increasingly crowded Southeast Asian market.