(Bloomberg) -- Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal was hanging in the balance, after the prime minister of Finland, which currently holds the presidency of the European Union, said an agreement won’t be ready before a summit of leaders that starts on Thursday.

“I think there is no time in a practical way and in a legal base to reach an agreement before the Council meeting,” Antti Rinne, the Finnish premier, said.

With 16 days before the U.K. is due to leave the EU, Johnson repeatedly pledged to “get Brexit done,” as he spoke in Parliament on Monday following a Queen’s Speech that laid the ground for a general election.

Key developments:

  • A hard Brexit remains a tail risk which is simply too big to ignore.
  • Johnson still needs to persuade his Northern Irish allies
  • EU chief Brexit negotiator is on Tuesday briefing European affairs ministers

Pound Gains After Barnier Comments (8:50 a.m.)

The pound jumped on Barnier’s comments, rising as much as 0.7% to $1.2698, close to the three-month high touched last week after leaders said they could see a “pathway” to a potential Brexit deal. Hedge funds and asset managers have been paring their bets on a weaker pound, according to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Barnier Says Brexit Deal Difficult, Possible (8:35 a.m)

EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said a Brexit deal is possible this week but talks remain tough. “Even if an agreement will be difficult -- more and more difficult to be frank -- it will still be possible this week,” Barnier told reporters in Luxembourg.

“Reaching an agreement is still possible. Obviously, any agreement must work for everyone, the whole of the UK and the whole of the EU,” he said.

He added that it’s high time “turn good intentions into a legal text.”

Earlier:

Boris Johnson’s Brexit Deal On Knife Edge as EU Needs More TimeJohnson Has a Big Brexit Problem: His Northern Irish FriendsThe Brexit Threat to World Markets Remains Too Huge to Ignore

To contact the reporters on this story: Jonathan Stearns in Luxembourg at jstearns2@bloomberg.net;Ian Wishart in Brussels at iwishart@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Richard Bravo

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.