BRITAIN: Pound Continues Slide Over No-Deal Brexit

The Independent reports:

The pound fell again on Friday after shock figures revealed UK economy shrunk for the first time since 2012 as the country lurches closer to recession and a calamitous no-deal Brexit.

Sterling was down 0.3 per cent against both the dollar and the euro on the back of news that GDP unexpectedly contracted 0.2 per cent in the April-June quarter.

The weak pound would normally be expected to boost exports but Britain’s manufacturers but output from the sector plunged, official data shows.

“Pound parity” is when it reaches $1.

Suddenly, the idea of pound parity seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may crash out of the European Union without a deal https://t.co/XMMMIc7ntl pic.twitter.com/JYVrV1MeND

— Bloomberg (@business) August 9, 2019

Options-based calculations show a 5.6% chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2% in early March @business https://t.co/0BQpVNTn9i Sterling moment is precisely like it was in 1992, a no brainer.https://t.co/mOIpkBV9je pic.twitter.com/FBHtS0MI5i

— Aly-Khan Satchu (@alykhansatchu) August 9, 2019

The British economy fell by 0.2 percent in the second quarter, surprising analysts amid Brexit worries. https://t.co/ib7irmAhFo

— NYT Business (@nytimesbusiness) August 9, 2019