Stronger British Pound May Weigh On Local Companies

 | May 02, 2016 10:12AM ET

Stronger British pound may weigh on local companies

Lower probability of Brexit from EU and the following pound strengthening may weight on the British companies. The exchange rate and stock market indices are often negatively correlated. Some investors believe voting against Brexit on referendum on June 23, 2016 may lead to tighter monetary policy by the Bank of England which means higher rates. The FTSE 100 stock index ended last week lower. Will its correction go on?

The British economic growth stunted in Q1 2016 to 0.4% compared to 0.6% in Q4 2015. Moreover, the profits of English companies and banks fell short of expectations. The weak Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) quarterly earnings were released on Friday which pushed its stocks 5% lower. British Airways stated the lowered demand for air carriage. The Restaurant Group (LON:RTN) stocks showed the record slump of 23%. The British FTSE 100 index is 0.5% above the year opening and its P/E ratio is 18.1. We believe it is a bit overbought compared to the German DAX which is 6.2% below the year opening with Р/Е of 15%. The Bank holidays will be in Britain on Monday. From Tuesday to Thursday various PMIs for April will be released.