Pound plunges in the run-up to referendum
The British pound plunged to an eight-week low on Monday as latest polls show a swing towards Brexit.
The British pound lost another 0.3 percent in Asia, falling to $1.4200, after plummeting 1.4 percent on Friday and hitting a three-year low against the yen.
Brexit concerns continue to weigh, as well as Saturday’s mass shooting in Orlando and its impact on the presidential race having an effect on the dollar.
Worst day in four months for Asian shares
Asian shares had their worst day in nearly four months on Monday, with both the NIkkei 225 and the Shanghai Composite finishing down over 3 percent.
A rise in the yen had a negative effect on the Japanese markets, having a knock-on effect on large export companies, sending its benchmark index down 3.5 percent. Meetings by both the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan later this week both weigh.
A recent spate of poor economic data from Japan has also highlighted the difficulties Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has had with repowering the country’s weak economy, which has been subject to years of heavy stimulus to little discernible effect.
Rents soar to over half of workers’ income, says Countrywide
Renting a one-bedroom property in the UK now costs over half of young workers’ take-home pay, according to new data from property firm Countrywide.
In London, the figure has risen from 41 percent to 57 percent of the monthly wages of the average worker under 30 since 2007. The average rent on a one-bed property in the capital was £1,133 in May. In comparison, the lowest rents are found in the Midlands, where workers spend a third of their take-home pay.
And alarmingly, the report shows that rents are still rising. Countrywide’s analysis of all new lets showed landlords have increased prices by 2.9 percent since May 2015, with those coming up for renewal increasing by 5.2 percent.
Johnny Morris, research director at Countrywide, commented: “Many tenants have adapted to rising prices by either moving to cheaper areas, further from the centre, or sharing. Stalling rental growth in the capital raises the question whether London’s rents have reached their affordability limits for now.”
13/06/2016
