The leaders of the European Union and Britain have extended their time until the end of the week to sign a new trade agreement that puts the estimated $ 1 trillion in annual trade at risk of high tariffs if they fail to reach an agreement by December 31 - the end of the transition period.

Dominic Raab, the foreign minister of BBC TV said that "It is clear that the opportunity to continue the conversation has not yet been lost, but there are also unresolved differences." He also added that "they need to take stock on Sunday and decide on the future of the talks."

In line with market expectations, the total volume of the ECB's PEPP stimulus program has increased to 1.85 trillion euros, which is 500 billion euros.

This was the main topic of the press conference led by Christine Lagarde explaining the move. Traders were also waiting to hear whether the Bank was beginning to feel uncomfortable about the scale and pace of the Euro's growth.

"For the most part, the ECB has met reasonable expectations," according to NED Rumpeltin, head of European Currency Strategy at TD Securities.

"We have seen a slight increase in Euro rates, but nothing serious ... What matters now is what Lagarde will say and how she says it, especially about the strength of the Euro going beyond the standard."

The yield on government bonds in the euro area which is moving inversely with the price, continued to fall. Italy's 10-year bond yield hit a record low of 0.53%. Spain and Portugal have reached the level of 0.013% and - 0.022%, respectively.

US lawmakers also failed to settle differences over aid to state and local governments but approved a bill for temporary government funding.