UK PM Johnson: Collectively telling cafes, pubs and restaurants to close tonight

"We will need to take the next steps, we are strengthening measures," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday while speaking at a news conference on coronavirus. "We need to push down further on the transmission curve. We are collectively telling cafes, pubs and restaurants to close tonight."

Additional takeaways

"Now we're going to defeat disease with a huge effort to slow spread by reducing unnecessary social contact."

"The speed of our eventual recovery depends entirely on ability to get on top of the virus."

"Leisure centres, clubs and gyms should close."

"We need to keep people apart."

Market reaction

The GBP/USD pair largely ignored these comments and was last seen trading at 1.1735, adding 2.2% on the day.