London — After months of Brexit uncertainty, the first faint outlines of a plan from Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday have given investors in the pound something to work with at last — although substantial risks remain of the currency falling again. May confirmed what most Westminster watchers had come to expect, that Britain will pull out of the EU’s single market when it exits the bloc and not look for a compromise deal to retain some of its benefits. But, perhaps sensing that a Supreme Court decision would force her hand anyway, she said that Parliament would get a vote on the Brexit deal and that firms would be given time to make the transition to the new arrangements. Traders said the almost 3% rise in sterling against the dollar that followed — its biggest daily gain since at least 1998 — looked mainly like a squeeze on those who had already made money in six often chaotic months rather than conviction that its fall may be coming to an end. Stefan Hofrichter, chief econom...
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