At 4:30 am ET Friday, the Office for National Statistics publishes U.K. retail sales data for December. Sales are forecast to drop 0.1 percent on month, reversing November's 0.2 percent rise.

Ahead of the data, the pound recouped its early losses against its major rivals.

The pound was worth 1.2349 against the greenback, 142.02 against the yen, 1.2425 against the Swiss franc and 0.8633 against the euro as of 4:25 am ET.

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