LONDON: Sterling was on track for a weekly gain versus the dollar on Friday, as traders digested US election results and a fresh splurge of bond buying by the Bank of England. Currencies considered riskier, including the pound, have strengthened as Democratic candidate Joe Biden has taken the lead over President Donald Trump in key states, putting him on the verge of winning the White House.

The pound is up more than 1% for the week against the broadly weaker dollar, although it fell back around a fifth of a percent on the day to trade around the $1.31 mark. Sterling lost ground elsewhere against the euro - one of the big gainers this week - falling around 0.5% on the day.

Concern about the terms of Britain's exit from the European Union still weighed on the pound, after senior EU official Thierry Breton said there was a "50/50" chance of a trade deal, with negotiations expected to continue over the weekend.

The Bank of England on Thursday said it was increasing the size of its already huge bond-buying stimulus by a larger-than-expected 150 billion pounds ($197 billion), as it braced for more economic damage from coronavirus lockdowns.