EU Brexit negotiator Micheal Barnier positive about Brexit this week

EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said Tuesday that a deal with Britain could be reached this week, but warned more tough talks are still needed.

Sterling rose sharply against the dollar Tuesday after the latest comments on Brexit from Barnier.

“Our team(s) are working hard, and work has just started now today, this work has been intense over the weekend and yesterday, because even if the agreement will be difficult, more and more difficult, to be frank, it is still possible this week,” Barnier told reporters in Luxembourg on Tuesday morning.

He added that “any agreement must work for everyone,” saying it is “high time to turn good intentions into a legal text.”

Traders have been on edge as the Brexit deadline of Oct. 31 approaches and there’s still no clear agreement for how the U.K. will leave the European Union.

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson made fresh proposals earlier in early October to overcome differences over the controversial Irish backstop — an insurance policy that is meant to protect the EU’s single market (an economic area with the same rules and standards) without imposing a hard border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

European leaders are gathering in Brussels Thursday and Friday, where Johnson hopes to strike an agreement with his counterparts that will allow for an orderly exit from the EU.

According to the Irish broadcaster RTE, the U.K. will table fresh proposals on Tuesday morning aimed at breaking the latest Brexit deadlock.