UK's Chief Medical Adviser: No evidence this is a milder virus than earlier in year

British Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said on Monday that they have to take the resurgence of coronavirus cases in the UK very seriously and added that they should see this as a six-month problem.

Additional takeaways

"There is no evidence this is a milder virus than earlier in the year."

"We see here the virus is moving up the age bands."

"We have learned to treat this virus more effectively."

"The virus will have a significant impact on the nation's health if we let it get out of control."

"Some of the things we are going to have to do will have an impact on the economy/society."

"If we do too little this virus will get out of control

"if we do too much it will hit the economy."

"We must reduce social contacts."

"If we do not change the course we will find ourselves in a very difficult place."

Market reaction

The risk-averse market environment continues to weigh on the British pound. As of writing, the GBP/USD pair was down 0.52% on a daily basis at 1.2850.