India&#39;s foreign exchange reserves hit a record high of $363.83 billion as of the week ended June 17, shoring up the country&#39;s defences just as investors brace for continued volatility after Britain voted to leave the European Union. 
 
Analsyts said FX reserves rose mainly on currency valuations. 
 
The Reserve Bank of India has also been steadily building Dollars to help meet $20 billion in expected outflows in September tied to maturing Dollar deposits - or the foreign currency non-resident (bank) deposits - raised during 2013 when India was in midst of a currency crisis. 
 
The weekly data comes on a day when the Indian Rupee fell to as low as 68.22 to the Dollar, its lowest since March 1 and not far from a record low of 68.85 hit in August 2013, during the crisis. 
 
The currency however cut some of its losses to end at 67.96/97, compared with its close of 67.25 on Thursday. 
 
&quot;India&#39;s strong reserves position is an important buffer against volatility in these uncertain times,&quot; said A Prasanna, an economist at ICICI Securities Primary Dealership Ltd in Mumbai. 
 
&quot;However, reserves are likely to see some decline in coming months due to the FCNR redemptions. Over the medium term, we expect reserves to keep expanding, boosted by sustainable inflows such as FDI (foreign direct investment).&quot; 
 
RBI governor Raghuram Rajan and finance minister Arun Jaitely said on Friday India was ready to deal with the aftermath of the Brexit vote, citing its solid economy and planned government reforms. 
 
Rajan also touted the country&#39;s Forex reserves as key defence against foreign investor selling. 
 
(Reuters)

RBI governor Raghuram Rajan and finance minister Arun Jaitely said India was ready to deal with the aftermath of the Brexit vote

India's foreign exchange reserves hit a record high of $363.83 billion as of the week ended June 17, shoring up the country's defences just as investors brace for continued volatility after Britain voted to leave the European Union. Analsyts said FX reserves rose mainly on currency valuations. The Reserve Bank of India has also been steadily building Dollars to help meet $20 billion in expected outflows in September tied to maturing Dollar deposits - or the foreign currency non-resident (bank) deposits - raised during 2013 when India was in midst of a currency crisis. The weekly data comes on a day when the Indian Rupee fell to as low as 68.22 to the Dollar, its lowest since March 1 and not far from a record low of 68.85 hit in August 2013, during the crisis. The currency however cut some of its losses to end at 67.96/97, compared with its close of 67.25 on Thursday. "India's strong reserves position is an important buffer against volatility in these uncertain times," said A Prasanna, an economist at ICICI Securities Primary Dealership Ltd in Mumbai. "However, reserves are likely to see some decline in coming months due to the FCNR redemptions. Over the medium term, we expect reserves to keep expanding, boosted by sustainable inflows such as FDI (foreign direct investment)." RBI governor Raghuram Rajan and finance minister Arun Jaitely said on Friday India was ready to deal with the aftermath of the Brexit vote, citing its solid economy and planned government reforms. Rajan also touted the country's Forex reserves as key defence against foreign investor selling. (Reuters)

India's forex reserves hit record high of $363.83 billion amid market turmoil

Mexico&#39;s finance minister Luis Videgaray announced on Friday a $1.68 billion budget cut to deal with the consequences of Britain&#39;s vote to leave the European Union. 
 
&quot;The British people have surprised the world,&quot; Videgaray said at a news conference. 
 
(AFP)

'The British people have surprised the world,' says Mexico finance minister Luis Videgaray

Mexico's finance minister Luis Videgaray announced on Friday a $1.68 billion budget cut to deal with the consequences of Britain's vote to leave the European Union. "The British people have surprised the world," Videgaray said at a news conference. (AFP)

Mexico announces $1.68 billion budget cut after Brexit

US President, Barack Obama&nbsp; 
&quot;The people of the United Kingdom have spoken, and we respect their decision,&quot; Obama said in a statement. &quot;The United Kingdom and the European Union will remain indispensable partners of the United States even as they begin negotiating their ongoing relationship.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
British Prime Minister, David Cameron&nbsp; 
&quot;I do not think it would be right for me to try to be the captain that steers our country to its next destination ... it is in the national interest to have a period of stability and then the new leadership required.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Russian President, Vladimir Putin 
&quot;I think it is understandable why this happened: first, no one wants to feed and subsidise weaker economies ...second, people are apparently dissatisfied with the resolution of security issues, which has become more acute against the background of powerful migration processes.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Chinese fogeign ministry spokeswoman, Hua Chunying 
&quot;The impact will be on all levels, not only on relations between China and Britain ... China supports the European integration process and would like to see Europe playing a proactive role in international affairs.&quot; 
 
US Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump 
&quot;They took back control of their country. It&#39;s a great thing ...people are angry, all over the world ...they&#39;re angry over borders, they&#39;re angry over people coming into the country and taking over. Nobody even knows who they are. They&#39;re angry about many, many things.&quot; 
 
Pope Francis 
&quot;It was the will expressed by the people and this requires a great responsibility on the part of all of us to guarantee the good of the people of the United Kingdom, as well as the good and co-existence of the European continent.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
World Trade Organisation director, general Roberto Azevedo&nbsp; 
&quot;The WTO stands ready to work with the UK and the EU to assist them in any way we can,&quot; WTO director-general Roberto Azevedo said on Twitter.&nbsp; 
Azevedo warned in a speech this month that British business competitiveness would suffer if Britons voted to leave the European Union. &quot;While trade would continue, it could be on worse terms,&quot; he said at the time of a vote to leave the EU.&nbsp; 
He has already said that Britain would have to renegotiate its relationship with the rest of the WTO, which could take years or decades.&nbsp; 
 
EU foreign policy head, Federica Mogherini? 
&quot;We will continue to act as a force for peace, a provider of security, and a staunch supporter of international cooperation and multilateralism,&quot; Federica Mogherini said, adding she regretted Britain&#39;s decision to leave.&nbsp; 
 
European Council President, Donald Tusk 
&quot;We are determined to keep our unity as 27 ... I will propose that we start a period of wider reflection on the future of our union.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Leading figure in &quot;Leave&quot; campaign, Boris Johnson 
&quot;We can find our voice in the world again, a voice that is commensurate with the fifth-biggest economy on Earth ... I believe we now have a glorious opportunity: we can pass our laws and set our taxes entirely according to the needs of the UK economy ...&nbsp; 
&quot;There is now no need for haste and ... nothing will change over the short term.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
German chancellor, Angela Merkel 
&quot;We have to recognise the decision of the majority of the British people with deep regret today. There is no point beating about the bush: today is a watershed for Europe, it is a watershed for the European unification process.&quot; 
 
French President, Francois Hollande&nbsp; 
&quot;Europe must act quickly where it&#39;s needed and must, once and for all, let member states handle what is their exclusive domain.&quot; 
 
French Prime Minister, Manuel Valls 
&quot;It&#39;s an explosive shock. At stake is the break-up pure and simple of the union. Now is the time to invent another Europe.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Norwegian Prime Minister: Erna Solberg 
Solberg called the vote a &quot;signal from both the British voters and many other voters around Europe who feel that the EU is not providing good enough answers to today&#39;s challenges&quot;. 
 
Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban 
&quot;Brussels must hear the voice of the people, this is the biggest lesson from this decision.&quot; 
&quot;Europe is strong only if it can give answers to major issues such as immigration that would strengthen Europe itself and not weaken it. The EU has failed to give these answers.&quot; 
 
Polish President, Andrzej Duda 
&quot;Everything must be done to prevent other countries leaving.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Italian Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi&nbsp; 
&quot;We have to change (the EU) to make it more human and more just, but Europe is our home, it&#39;s our future.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Acting Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy 
&quot;In little more than half a century, Europeans have built the greatest space for peace, freedom and prosperity in all of humanity&rsquo;s history. And, despite the serious setbacks like the one we face today, nobody should doubt that we are going to continue working to build tomorrow.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Swedish EU Minister, Ann Linde 
&quot;We must show people why we believe the EU is important, why we need to remain. We have to look at the things that matter in people&#39;s everyday lives, perhaps where there have been ambiguities, where there&#39;s been arrogance and where people have felt it&#39;s been an elite project.&quot; 
 
Greek Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras 
&quot;We urgently need a new vision and beginning for a united Europe - for a better Europe, more social and democratic.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
First minister of Scotland, Nicola Strugeon 
&quot;I think an independence referendum is now highly likely ... intend to take all possible steps and explore all options to give effect to how people in Scotland voted, in other words to secure our continuing place in the EU and in the single market.&quot; 
 
Nationalist deputy first minister of Northern Ireland, Martin Mcguinness 
&quot;The British government now has no democratic mandate to represent the views of the North in any future negotiations with the European Union and I do believe that there is a democratic imperative for a &#39;border poll&#39; to be held.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
United Nations Secretary-General, Ban-Ki-Moon 
The UN Secretary-General expects Britain to continue its leadership at the world body particularly on development issues after the country, a Security Council veto power, voted to leave the European Union.&nbsp; 
&quot;At the UN, we look forward to continuing our work with the United Kingdom and the European Union, both important partners,&quot; Ban&#39;s spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement on Friday. &quot;When we work together, we are stronger.&quot;&nbsp; 
He said that as Britain and the European Union begin to negotiate a departure, Ban &quot;trusts in Europe&#39;s well-proven history of pragmatism and common responsibility in the interest of European citizens&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
International Monetary Fund Managing Director, Christine Lagarde&nbsp; 
On Friday Lagarde urged British and European authorities to work towards a smooth transition implementing Britons&#39; vote to leave the European Union.&nbsp; 
&quot;We take note of the decision by the people of the United Kingdom,&quot; Lagarde said in a statement. &quot;We urge the authorities in the UK and Europe to work collaboratively to ensure a smooth transition to a new economic relationship between the UK and the EU, including by clarifying the procedures and broad objectives that will guide the process.&quot;&nbsp; 
&quot;We strongly support commitments of the Bank of England and the ECB to supply liquidity to the banking system and curtail excess financial volatility. We will continue to monitor developments closely and stand ready to support our members as needed,&quot; Lagarde added.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
&nbsp;(Reuters)

Read quotes from around the globe about the UK exiting the European Union

US President, Barack Obama "The people of the United Kingdom have spoken, and we respect their decision," Obama said in a statement. "The United Kingdom and the European Union will remain indispensable partners of the United States even as they begin negotiating their ongoing relationship." British Prime Minister, David Cameron "I do not think it would be right for me to try to be the captain that steers our country to its next destination ... it is in the national interest to have a period of stability and then the new leadership required." Russian President, Vladimir Putin "I think it is understandable why this happened: first, no one wants to feed and subsidise weaker economies ...second, people are apparently dissatisfied with the resolution of security issues, which has become more acute against the background of powerful migration processes." Chinese fogeign ministry spokeswoman, Hua Chunying "The impact will be on all levels, not only on relations between China and Britain ... China supports the European integration process and would like to see Europe playing a proactive role in international affairs." US Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump "They took back control of their country. It's a great thing ...people are angry, all over the world ...they're angry over borders, they're angry over people coming into the country and taking over. Nobody even knows who they are. They're angry about many, many things." Pope Francis "It was the will expressed by the people and this requires a great responsibility on the part of all of us to guarantee the good of the people of the United Kingdom, as well as the good and co-existence of the European continent." World Trade Organisation director, general Roberto Azevedo "The WTO stands ready to work with the UK and the EU to assist them in any way we can," WTO director-general Roberto Azevedo said on Twitter. Azevedo warned in a speech this month that British business competitiveness would suffer if Britons voted to leave the European Union. "While trade would continue, it could be on worse terms," he said at the time of a vote to leave the EU. He has already said that Britain would have to renegotiate its relationship with the rest of the WTO, which could take years or decades. EU foreign policy head, Federica Mogherini? "We will continue to act as a force for peace, a provider of security, and a staunch supporter of international cooperation and multilateralism," Federica Mogherini said, adding she regretted Britain's decision to leave. European Council President, Donald Tusk "We are determined to keep our unity as 27 ... I will propose that we start a period of wider reflection on the future of our union." Leading figure in "Leave" campaign, Boris Johnson "We can find our voice in the world again, a voice that is commensurate with the fifth-biggest economy on Earth ... I believe we now have a glorious opportunity: we can pass our laws and set our taxes entirely according to the needs of the UK economy ... "There is now no need for haste and ... nothing will change over the short term." German chancellor, Angela Merkel "We have to recognise the decision of the majority of the British people with deep regret today. There is no point beating about the bush: today is a watershed for Europe, it is a watershed for the European unification process." French President, Francois Hollande "Europe must act quickly where it's needed and must, once and for all, let member states handle what is their exclusive domain." French Prime Minister, Manuel Valls "It's an explosive shock. At stake is the break-up pure and simple of the union. Now is the time to invent another Europe." Norwegian Prime Minister: Erna Solberg Solberg called the vote a "signal from both the British voters and many other voters around Europe who feel that the EU is not providing good enough answers to today's challenges". Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban "Brussels must hear the voice of the people, this is the biggest lesson from this decision." "Europe is strong only if it can give answers to major issues such as immigration that would strengthen Europe itself and not weaken it. The EU has failed to give these answers." Polish President, Andrzej Duda "Everything must be done to prevent other countries leaving." Italian Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi "We have to change (the EU) to make it more human and more just, but Europe is our home, it's our future." Acting Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy "In little more than half a century, Europeans have built the greatest space for peace, freedom and prosperity in all of humanity’s history. And, despite the serious setbacks like the one we face today, nobody should doubt that we are going to continue working to build tomorrow." Swedish EU Minister, Ann Linde "We must show people why we believe the EU is important, why we need to remain. We have to look at the things that matter in people's everyday lives, perhaps where there have been ambiguities, where there's been arrogance and where people have felt it's been an elite project." Greek Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras "We urgently need a new vision and beginning for a united Europe - for a better Europe, more social and democratic." First minister of Scotland, Nicola Strugeon "I think an independence referendum is now highly likely ... intend to take all possible steps and explore all options to give effect to how people in Scotland voted, in other words to secure our continuing place in the EU and in the single market." Nationalist deputy first minister of Northern Ireland, Martin Mcguinness "The British government now has no democratic mandate to represent the views of the North in any future negotiations with the European Union and I do believe that there is a democratic imperative for a 'border poll' to be held." United Nations Secretary-General, Ban-Ki-Moon The UN Secretary-General expects Britain to continue its leadership at the world body particularly on development issues after the country, a Security Council veto power, voted to leave the European Union. "At the UN, we look forward to continuing our work with the United Kingdom and the European Union, both important partners," Ban's spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement on Friday. "When we work together, we are stronger." He said that as Britain and the European Union begin to negotiate a departure, Ban "trusts in Europe's well-proven history of pragmatism and common responsibility in the interest of European citizens". International Monetary Fund Managing Director, Christine Lagarde On Friday Lagarde urged British and European authorities to work towards a smooth transition implementing Britons' vote to leave the European Union. "We take note of the decision by the people of the United Kingdom," Lagarde said in a statement. "We urge the authorities in the UK and Europe to work collaboratively to ensure a smooth transition to a new economic relationship between the UK and the EU, including by clarifying the procedures and broad objectives that will guide the process." "We strongly support commitments of the Bank of England and the ECB to supply liquidity to the banking system and curtail excess financial volatility. We will continue to monitor developments closely and stand ready to support our members as needed," Lagarde added. (Reuters)

World leaders respond to Brexit

Close on the heels of the murder of British MP Jo Cox, United Kingdom is polling on Thursday to decide if the country will &lsquo;leave&rsquo; or &lsquo;remain&rsquo; in the European Union (EU). 
 
Apart from Asian markets wobbling and oil prices rising, reactions are pouring in from all quarters of the world, both favouring and defying the idea of the British exit from EU.&nbsp; 
 
United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) leader Nigel Farage, who favours Brexit, reportedly pulled out of a television debate right ahead of the EU referendum. While polling started this morning, he had already been actively urging the social media users on Twitter to &lsquo;vote&rsquo; and &lsquo;get our country back&rsquo;.&nbsp; 
 
Brexit would raise eyebrows in Ireland&nbsp; 
 
Expressing concern, however, Ireland foreign minister Charlie Flanagan Wednesday said that Ireland would have to consider taking steps to assist firms exporting into Britain, if its nearest neighbour and largest trade partner votes to leave the European Union.&nbsp; 
 
According to observers, Irish exporters would be the first to suffer if Brexit significantly weakened the Pound against the Euro and Flanagan said concerns were raised in meetings with trade bodies during the campaign. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s too early for me to speculate as to the nature of any actions that we may take, but we are fully sensitive to the challenge that lies ahead and the need to respond accordingly,&quot; Flanagan said and added, &ldquo;In the event of there being a vote to leave, we would be primarily focused on strategic national Irish interests across a range of issues, primarily economic and trade, so we have prepared a plan across a range of departments.&quot; 
 
About Euro 1.2 billion ($1.35 billion) worth of goods and services are traded between United Kingdom and Ireland each week with Irish farmers and food producers, major UK suppliers, particularly vulnerable. 
 
Why some leaders do not want Britain to &#39;leave&#39; 
 
Businessman George Soros had earlier this week observed that Britain&rsquo;s exit could lead to the depriciation of the Pound.&nbsp; 
 
Many world leaders, including Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnball, are not in favour of UK&rsquo;s exit from the EU.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;It would be a very big shock, there is no doubt about that, if Britain votes to leave the European Union. There will be obviously great efforts to ensure that the consequences of that shock are minimised,&rdquo; he said ahead of polls. &quot;Clearly, Britain is not voting to leave NATO, for example, so the strategic implications are not as severe as they could be, if that were the case. But it will be a big shock and it is a reminder as Margaret Thatcher once said &#39;to expect the unexpected&#39;. There are a lot of headwinds in the global economy, there are a lot of challenges, there are a lot of things that are beyond our control that effect global markets, that effect us.&quot; 
 
(WION and Agencies)&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Apart from Asian markets wobbling and oil prices rising, reactions are pouring in from all quarters of the world

Close on the heels of the murder of British MP Jo Cox, United Kingdom is polling on Thursday to decide if the country will ‘leave’ or ‘remain’ in the European Union (EU). Apart from Asian markets wobbling and oil prices rising, reactions are pouring in from all quarters of the world, both favouring and defying the idea of the British exit from EU. United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) leader Nigel Farage, who favours Brexit, reportedly pulled out of a television debate right ahead of the EU referendum. While polling started this morning, he had already been actively urging the social media users on Twitter to ‘vote’ and ‘get our country back’. Brexit would raise eyebrows in Ireland Expressing concern, however, Ireland foreign minister Charlie Flanagan Wednesday said that Ireland would have to consider taking steps to assist firms exporting into Britain, if its nearest neighbour and largest trade partner votes to leave the European Union. According to observers, Irish exporters would be the first to suffer if Brexit significantly weakened the Pound against the Euro and Flanagan said concerns were raised in meetings with trade bodies during the campaign. "It's too early for me to speculate as to the nature of any actions that we may take, but we are fully sensitive to the challenge that lies ahead and the need to respond accordingly," Flanagan said and added, “In the event of there being a vote to leave, we would be primarily focused on strategic national Irish interests across a range of issues, primarily economic and trade, so we have prepared a plan across a range of departments." About Euro 1.2 billion ($1.35 billion) worth of goods and services are traded between United Kingdom and Ireland each week with Irish farmers and food producers, major UK suppliers, particularly vulnerable. Why some leaders do not want Britain to 'leave' Businessman George Soros had earlier this week observed that Britain’s exit could lead to the depriciation of the Pound. Many world leaders, including Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnball, are not in favour of UK’s exit from the EU. "It would be a very big shock, there is no doubt about that, if Britain votes to leave the European Union. There will be obviously great efforts to ensure that the consequences of that shock are minimised,” he said ahead of polls. "Clearly, Britain is not voting to leave NATO, for example, so the strategic implications are not as severe as they could be, if that were the case. But it will be a big shock and it is a reminder as Margaret Thatcher once said 'to expect the unexpected'. There are a lot of headwinds in the global economy, there are a lot of challenges, there are a lot of things that are beyond our control that effect global markets, that effect us." (WION and Agencies)

'Leave' or 'Remain'? World reacts over possibility of Brexit

China is paying attention to Britain&#39;s referendum on membership of the European Union, and while it respects the people&#39;s choice, Beijing hopes to see a strong and stable EU, the Chinese government said on Thursday as Britons headed to the polls. 
 
China has not directly stated its opinion on the Brexit referendum, seeing the vote as an internal matter.But diplomatic sources say China has given coded support for the &quot;remain&quot; camp by calling for a strong, united Europe - something President Xi Jinping told British Prime Minister David Cameron in October and Foreign Minister Wang Yi repeated last month. 
 
&quot;We are paying attention to Britain`s referendum on its relationship with the EU. We respect the choice of the British people,&quot; Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing. 
 
&quot;We have also consistently supported the European integration process and would like to see a unified, strong and stable EU play an important role in international affairs,&quot; she added. 
 
Although China and Britain have a history of disputes over human rights and the future of the former British colony of Hong Kong, diplomats say export-reliant China values Britain as a strong advocate for free trade within the EU and the bloc as an important counterweight to the United States. 
 
Relations between Britain and China have been warming over the past few years and economic links have multiplied in tandem in what both countries refer to as a &quot;golden age&quot; in ties. 
 
&quot;China pays great attention to its relations with Britain and is willing to continue having mutually beneficial cooperation in all areas,&quot; Hua said. 
 
One of China&#39;s most influential and widely read newspapers, the Global Times, went further in its view on the referendum, saying that if Britain votes to leave the EU, then the country will lose its influence globally. 
 
The paper, published by the ruling Communist Party&#39;s official People&#39;s Daily, said the EU vote and 2014 Scottish independence referendum had made Britain appear one of the largest sources of uncertainty in Europe. 
 
&quot;The UK looks like it has been led astray, and this concerns Europe and the world,&quot; it said in joint editorials in its Chinese and English-language editions. 
 
&quot;Staying in the EU has clear and critical interests for the UK, such as market guarantees and stable employment. Leaving will politically cost the UK chances to exert its influence,&quot; the newspaper added. 
 
&quot;If the UK votes to leave, it will become an Atlantic orphan and lose its special relationship with the EU. In this circumstance, its special relationship with the US will become more notable, but it may mean less to the US.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

China has not taken an official stand, but diplomatic sources say that by calling for a united EU it has sided with the "Remain" campaign

China is paying attention to Britain's referendum on membership of the European Union, and while it respects the people's choice, Beijing hopes to see a strong and stable EU, the Chinese government said on Thursday as Britons headed to the polls. China has not directly stated its opinion on the Brexit referendum, seeing the vote as an internal matter.But diplomatic sources say China has given coded support for the "remain" camp by calling for a strong, united Europe - something President Xi Jinping told British Prime Minister David Cameron in October and Foreign Minister Wang Yi repeated last month. "We are paying attention to Britain`s referendum on its relationship with the EU. We respect the choice of the British people," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing. "We have also consistently supported the European integration process and would like to see a unified, strong and stable EU play an important role in international affairs," she added. Although China and Britain have a history of disputes over human rights and the future of the former British colony of Hong Kong, diplomats say export-reliant China values Britain as a strong advocate for free trade within the EU and the bloc as an important counterweight to the United States. Relations between Britain and China have been warming over the past few years and economic links have multiplied in tandem in what both countries refer to as a "golden age" in ties. "China pays great attention to its relations with Britain and is willing to continue having mutually beneficial cooperation in all areas," Hua said. One of China's most influential and widely read newspapers, the Global Times, went further in its view on the referendum, saying that if Britain votes to leave the EU, then the country will lose its influence globally. The paper, published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, said the EU vote and 2014 Scottish independence referendum had made Britain appear one of the largest sources of uncertainty in Europe. "The UK looks like it has been led astray, and this concerns Europe and the world," it said in joint editorials in its Chinese and English-language editions. "Staying in the EU has clear and critical interests for the UK, such as market guarantees and stable employment. Leaving will politically cost the UK chances to exert its influence," the newspaper added. "If the UK votes to leave, it will become an Atlantic orphan and lose its special relationship with the EU. In this circumstance, its special relationship with the US will become more notable, but it may mean less to the US." (Reuters)

As Britain votes, China wants to see strong, stable EU

Bitcoin slid 6.1 per cent to US$573.84 on Thursday, data compiled by Bloomberg showed, just a week after the digital currency had hit a two-year high on June 18. The price has lost about 25 per cent in the five-day period. 
 
Sources suggest that the decline is a response to the increasing prospects of Britain voting to stay in the European Union, an outcome that could be made official as soon as late Thursday night in US, and Friday morning in the United Kingdom, a report by The Business Times said.&nbsp; 
 
Confidence in digital currencies has diminished since the news of a hack suffered by another cryptocurrency spread on June 18. &nbsp;According to Coindesk,&nbsp;a news site specialising in bitcoins and digital currencies,&nbsp;The&nbsp;Decentralised Autonomous Organisation, a cryptocurrency-backed venture capital fund, was hacked last week. 
 
(WION) 
 
&nbsp; 
 
 
&nbsp;

The digital currency is in a huge slump after hitting two-year high only last Friday

Bitcoin slid 6.1 per cent to US$573.84 on Thursday, data compiled by Bloomberg showed, just a week after the digital currency had hit a two-year high on June 18. The price has lost about 25 per cent in the five-day period. Sources suggest that the decline is a response to the increasing prospects of Britain voting to stay in the European Union, an outcome that could be made official as soon as late Thursday night in US, and Friday morning in the United Kingdom, a report by The Business Times said. Confidence in digital currencies has diminished since the news of a hack suffered by another cryptocurrency spread on June 18. According to Coindesk, a news site specialising in bitcoins and digital currencies, The Decentralised Autonomous Organisation, a cryptocurrency-backed venture capital fund, was hacked last week. (WION)

Bitcoin price drops below $600 as Brexit hopes falter

Britain votes on Thursday in a referendum on whether it should stay in or leave the European Union. 
 
Here is some key information about the vote, from the question on the ballot paper to when the results are likely to start coming in. 
 
Voters will be presented with one question: &quot;Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?&quot; 
 
They will have two possible answers: &quot;Remain a member of the European Union&quot; or &quot;Leave the European Union&quot;. 
 
In Wales, the ballot paper will be in English and Welsh. 
 
British, Irish and Commonwealth citizens over the age of 18 who live in Britain, as well as citizens of Gibraltar, are all eligible to vote provided they have registered. 
 
That means that Cypriots and Maltese living in Britain can vote since their countries are members of the Commonwealth, as well as the European Union. 
 
British nationals who have lived abroad for less than 15 years can also vote. A legal challenge to give a vote to expatriates who have been away longer failed last month. 
 
There are a total of 46,499,537 registered voters, according to the latest figures from the Electoral Commission. This is more than in last year&#39;s general election when 46,354,197 people were registered. 
 
Polls are open from 6 am to 9 pm (GMT) and counting begins as soon as the last votes are cast, with the result expected early on Friday morning. 
 
There are no official exit polls because polling experts say the lack of recent comparable votes in Britain could make the results less reliable. 
 
Results from polling will, however, be released after the ballots close. 
 
Some hedge funds and banks have also reportedly commissioned private exit polls that would allow them to make trades based on their forecasts even while voting is still going on. 
 
There are 382 local counting areas, including Gibraltar, which will all declare their results independently throughout the night. 
 
The first two, Sunderland in northeast England and Wandsworth in London, are expected to declare at about 11:30 pm GMT. 
 
The first big wave of results is expected after 1 am GMT on Friday and another wave a couple of hours afterwards. 
 
Turnout is likely to be announced earlier, which may give an indication of the result to come, with a high turnout expected to favour the &quot;Remain&quot; camp. 
 
The formal result will not be confirmed by the chief counting officer until all local areas, collated into 12 regional tallies, are declared. 
 
The final national result will be announced in Manchester Town Hall in northern England. 
 
(AFP) 
&nbsp;

46,499,537 registered voters in 382 local counting areas, all for 1 big referendum

Britain votes on Thursday in a referendum on whether it should stay in or leave the European Union. Here is some key information about the vote, from the question on the ballot paper to when the results are likely to start coming in. Voters will be presented with one question: "Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?" They will have two possible answers: "Remain a member of the European Union" or "Leave the European Union". In Wales, the ballot paper will be in English and Welsh. British, Irish and Commonwealth citizens over the age of 18 who live in Britain, as well as citizens of Gibraltar, are all eligible to vote provided they have registered. That means that Cypriots and Maltese living in Britain can vote since their countries are members of the Commonwealth, as well as the European Union. British nationals who have lived abroad for less than 15 years can also vote. A legal challenge to give a vote to expatriates who have been away longer failed last month. There are a total of 46,499,537 registered voters, according to the latest figures from the Electoral Commission. This is more than in last year's general election when 46,354,197 people were registered. Polls are open from 6 am to 9 pm (GMT) and counting begins as soon as the last votes are cast, with the result expected early on Friday morning. There are no official exit polls because polling experts say the lack of recent comparable votes in Britain could make the results less reliable. Results from polling will, however, be released after the ballots close. Some hedge funds and banks have also reportedly commissioned private exit polls that would allow them to make trades based on their forecasts even while voting is still going on. There are 382 local counting areas, including Gibraltar, which will all declare their results independently throughout the night. The first two, Sunderland in northeast England and Wandsworth in London, are expected to declare at about 11:30 pm GMT. The first big wave of results is expected after 1 am GMT on Friday and another wave a couple of hours afterwards. Turnout is likely to be announced earlier, which may give an indication of the result to come, with a high turnout expected to favour the "Remain" camp. The formal result will not be confirmed by the chief counting officer until all local areas, collated into 12 regional tallies, are declared. The final national result will be announced in Manchester Town Hall in northern England. (AFP)

Brexit: Key facts on polling day

Britons voted on Thursday to decide the future of their country and Europe in a referendum on European Union membership. The votes will decide whether Britain will remain or leave the EU. 
 
The &quot;Leave&quot; campaign says Britain&#39;s economy would benefit from Brexit.&nbsp; 
 
The &quot;Stay&quot; campaign says Britain&#39;s exit from EU would hurt the economy, the country&#39;s status, and security.&nbsp; 
 
Here&#39;s a look at what South Asians on twitter have to say about the Brexit referendum. 
 
 
The supporters: 
&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
I did follow a few debates / oped&#39;s in press on <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Brexit?src=hash">#Brexit</a> &amp; it seemed clear to me that the leave campaign had superior arg&#39;s &amp; presentation.
&mdash; Manohar Seetharam (@manohar_sram) <a href="https://twitter.com/manohar_sram/status/745663074217115648">June 22, 2016</a></blockquote>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Let show the world <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Brexit?src=hash">#Brexit</a> for freedom, for victory ?. So <a href="https://twitter.com/vote_leave">@vote_leave</a>
&mdash; Md Nazrul Islam (@nazrulworld) <a href="https://twitter.com/nazrulworld/status/742998037220499456">June 15, 2016</a></blockquote>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
It&#39;s every country&#39;s demand to be a part of any economic bloc. It has many advantages but only economical. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Brexit?src=hash">#Brexit</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/StrongerIn?src=hash">#StrongerIn</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UKreferendum?src=hash">#UKreferendum</a>
&mdash; Muhammad Khalid (@iamkhalidraza) <a href="https://twitter.com/iamkhalidraza/status/745843215106973700">June 23, 2016</a></blockquote>
 
 
The opposers:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Britain has colonised maximum of countries and then exited them. Now they want to exit EU. Old habits die hard <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Brexit?src=hash">#Brexit</a>
&mdash; DaaTanchiTaai (@runjhunmehrotra) <a href="https://twitter.com/runjhunmehrotra/status/745862378491879425">June 23, 2016</a></blockquote>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Weird that <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Britain?src=hash">#Britain</a> is complaining about immigrants after them being illegal immigrants in Asia and Africa for over two centuries! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Brexit?src=hash">#Brexit</a>
&mdash; Tathagata (@ArchaeoNomad) <a href="https://twitter.com/ArchaeoNomad/status/745861701497683968">June 23, 2016</a></blockquote>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
BREXIT should be done for good reasons and not pathetic ones. It could lead to great destabilisation in Europe.
&mdash; Abhishek Singhvi (@DrAMSinghvi) <a href="https://twitter.com/DrAMSinghvi/status/745583271308832768">June 22, 2016</a> 
&nbsp;</blockquote>
 
The philosopher: 
&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Britain + Exit = <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Brexit?src=hash">#Brexit</a>. Sounds simple, but it&#39;s not.
&mdash; Sirajul Islam (@sirajul) <a href="https://twitter.com/sirajul/status/743478705045921792">June 16, 2016</a></blockquote>

People voice their opinion on whether they support or oppose Britain's exit from EU

Britons voted on Thursday to decide the future of their country and Europe in a referendum on European Union membership. The votes will decide whether Britain will remain or leave the EU. The "Leave" campaign says Britain's economy would benefit from Brexit. The "Stay" campaign says Britain's exit from EU would hurt the economy, the country's status, and security. Here's a look at what South Asians on twitter have to say about the Brexit referendum. The supporters: I did follow a few debates / oped's in press on #Brexit & it seemed clear to me that the leave campaign had superior arg's & presentation. — Manohar Seetharam (@manohar_sram) June 22, 2016 Let show the world #Brexit for freedom, for victory ?. So @vote_leave — Md Nazrul Islam (@nazrulworld) June 15, 2016 It's every country's demand to be a part of any economic bloc. It has many advantages but only economical. #Brexit #StrongerIn #UKreferendum — Muhammad Khalid (@iamkhalidraza) June 23, 2016 The opposers: Britain has colonised maximum of countries and then exited them. Now they want to exit EU. Old habits die hard #Brexit — DaaTanchiTaai (@runjhunmehrotra) June 23, 2016 Weird that #Britain is complaining about immigrants after them being illegal immigrants in Asia and Africa for over two centuries! #Brexit — Tathagata (@ArchaeoNomad) June 23, 2016 BREXIT should be done for good reasons and not pathetic ones. It could lead to great destabilisation in Europe. — Abhishek Singhvi (@DrAMSinghvi) June 22, 2016 The philosopher: Britain + Exit = #Brexit. Sounds simple, but it's not. — Sirajul Islam (@sirajul) June 16, 2016

Brexit: South Asia speaks out on Twitter

Asian shares edged up and Sterling stood close to its peak for the year on Thursday, as investors were cautiously optimistic that British voters would opt to remain in the European Union at a referendum later in the session.&nbsp; 
 
Two opinion polls published late on Wednesday, a few hours before voters were due to begin to cast their votes, showed the &quot;Remain&quot; camp gaining momentum in the closely divided campaign. 
 
MSCI&#39;s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged up 0.2 per cent in early trading, shrugging off modest overnight losses on Wall Street. 
 
Japan&#39;s Nikkei share average rose 0.3 per cent. 
 
&quot;Markets seem to have almost entirely priced in a &#39;Remain&#39; vote win, meaning that the market moves and volatility around the vote may be far less than many had been expected,&quot; wrote Angus Nicholson, market analyst at IG in Melbourne. 
 
&quot;Nonetheless, markets are still incredibly nervous and some sharp market moves are likely over the next 24 hours,&quot; he said. 
 
Sterling rose to $1.4847, its highest against the dollar in 2016, and was last up 0.6 per cent at $1.4798. 
 
The perceived safe-haven Yen also slipped on receding fears of the market turmoil that would likely follow if Britain were to pull out of the EU. 
 
The dollar added 0.2 per cent to 104.69 Yen , while the euro gained 0.5 percent to 118.54 yen . 
 
The euro rose 0.2 per cent to $1.1322 , while the dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six rival currencies, slipped 0.1 per cent to 93.582. 
 
On the US data front, home resales rose to a more than nine-year high last month against a backdrop of historically low mortgage rates, adding to recent upbeat second quarter data. 
 
Crude oil prices rose after settling down more than 1 per cent on Wednesday after the U.S. government reported a smaller-than-expected inventory drawdown. 
 
Brent added 0.7 per cent to $50.23 a barrel after shedding 1.5 per cent on Wednesday, while U.S. crude was up 0.8 per cent at $49.53 after giving up 1.4 per cent in the previous session. 
 
Spot gold plumbed a two-week low of $1,260.36 an ounce and was last down 0.4 per cent at $1,261.24. 
 
(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

Sterling rose to its highest against Dollar in 2016 and Yen slipped on diminishing fears of a market turmoil that would follow if Britain were to pull out of EU

Asian shares edged up and Sterling stood close to its peak for the year on Thursday, as investors were cautiously optimistic that British voters would opt to remain in the European Union at a referendum later in the session. Two opinion polls published late on Wednesday, a few hours before voters were due to begin to cast their votes, showed the "Remain" camp gaining momentum in the closely divided campaign. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged up 0.2 per cent in early trading, shrugging off modest overnight losses on Wall Street. Japan's Nikkei share average rose 0.3 per cent. "Markets seem to have almost entirely priced in a 'Remain' vote win, meaning that the market moves and volatility around the vote may be far less than many had been expected," wrote Angus Nicholson, market analyst at IG in Melbourne. "Nonetheless, markets are still incredibly nervous and some sharp market moves are likely over the next 24 hours," he said. Sterling rose to $1.4847, its highest against the dollar in 2016, and was last up 0.6 per cent at $1.4798. The perceived safe-haven Yen also slipped on receding fears of the market turmoil that would likely follow if Britain were to pull out of the EU. The dollar added 0.2 per cent to 104.69 Yen , while the euro gained 0.5 percent to 118.54 yen . The euro rose 0.2 per cent to $1.1322 , while the dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six rival currencies, slipped 0.1 per cent to 93.582. On the US data front, home resales rose to a more than nine-year high last month against a backdrop of historically low mortgage rates, adding to recent upbeat second quarter data. Crude oil prices rose after settling down more than 1 per cent on Wednesday after the U.S. government reported a smaller-than-expected inventory drawdown. Brent added 0.7 per cent to $50.23 a barrel after shedding 1.5 per cent on Wednesday, while U.S. crude was up 0.8 per cent at $49.53 after giving up 1.4 per cent in the previous session. Spot gold plumbed a two-week low of $1,260.36 an ounce and was last down 0.4 per cent at $1,261.24. (Reuters)

Asia stocks, Sterling rise as Brexit anxiety abates

&nbsp;A poll by Ipsos MORI suggested 52 per cent of British voters would opt to remain in the European Union and 48 per cent would vote to leave in a referendum being held today.

Sterling rose against the dollar after the poll was published, reaching a six-month high and trading up 1.2 per cent on the day.

The poll of 1,592 people was commissioned by the Evening Standard newspaper and the research was conducted on Tuesday and Wednesday, up until 9 pm (2000 GMT) on Wednesday. 
 
(Reuters)

The poll suggests that the Leave and Remain campaigns are running neck and neck

A poll by Ipsos MORI suggested 52 per cent of British voters would opt to remain in the European Union and 48 per cent would vote to leave in a referendum being held today. Sterling rose against the dollar after the poll was published, reaching a six-month high and trading up 1.2 per cent on the day. The poll of 1,592 people was commissioned by the Evening Standard newspaper and the research was conducted on Tuesday and Wednesday, up until 9 pm (2000 GMT) on Wednesday. (Reuters)

Brexit vote: Remain 52 per cent, Leave 48 per cent, says Ipsos MORI poll

Amid fears that the eurosceptic Scandinavian country could lose a key ally in Brussels, a Danish daily Berlingske Thursday published an English-language editorial imploring Britain to &quot;please stay&quot; in the EU. 
 
&quot;As a nation, we in Denmark understand your scepticism about the EU, perhaps better than any other country. Three times we voted no -- in 1992, 2000 and 2015 -- but never out,&quot; the right-wing daily wrote. 
 
&quot;Let us stay and fight for pragmatic, better and more sustainable European solutions,&quot; it said, adding that Britain&#39;s voice was needed in the EU to &quot;fight for free trade and (for) breaking down regulation and bureaucracy.&quot; 
 
A cartoon on the paper&#39;s front page showed a door marked with an EU flag slamming shut on a half naked man with a bowler hat and an umbrella, tearing off his Union Jack suit as it closed behind him. 
 
An English translation of the editorial, headlined &quot;Please Stay&quot;, was published on Berlingske&#39;s website. 
 
Reading between the lines 
Pertinently, Denmark has been a reluctant member of the EU since joining in 1973, rejecting the Maastricht Treaty in a 1992 referendum and only saying &quot;yes&quot; the following year after being granted opt-out clauses on the euro, defence, and justice and home affairs. 
 
Danish voters also rejected joining the euro in 2000, and proposals to lift some of the country&#39;s exemptions on EU justice rules were turned down in a referendum in December last year. 
 
Like his British counterpart David Cameron, Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen wants to curb European migrants&#39; access to child benefits, but with exports accounting for just over half of the country&#39;s economic output there are few politicians who back leaving the bloc completely.&nbsp; 
 
The eurosceptic Danish People&#39;s Party, one of the government&#39;s main allies in parliament, wants Denmark to obtain further EU opt-outs in case of a Brexit, as it believes Britain would then obtain a &quot;hybrid&quot; agreement with the bloc rather than leave completely. 
 
(AFP)&nbsp; 
 
 
 
&nbsp;

'Let us stay and fight for pragmatic, better and more sustainable European solutions,' says Berlingske's editorial in English

Amid fears that the eurosceptic Scandinavian country could lose a key ally in Brussels, a Danish daily Berlingske Thursday published an English-language editorial imploring Britain to "please stay" in the EU. "As a nation, we in Denmark understand your scepticism about the EU, perhaps better than any other country. Three times we voted no -- in 1992, 2000 and 2015 -- but never out," the right-wing daily wrote. "Let us stay and fight for pragmatic, better and more sustainable European solutions," it said, adding that Britain's voice was needed in the EU to "fight for free trade and (for) breaking down regulation and bureaucracy." A cartoon on the paper's front page showed a door marked with an EU flag slamming shut on a half naked man with a bowler hat and an umbrella, tearing off his Union Jack suit as it closed behind him. An English translation of the editorial, headlined "Please Stay", was published on Berlingske's website. Reading between the lines Pertinently, Denmark has been a reluctant member of the EU since joining in 1973, rejecting the Maastricht Treaty in a 1992 referendum and only saying "yes" the following year after being granted opt-out clauses on the euro, defence, and justice and home affairs. Danish voters also rejected joining the euro in 2000, and proposals to lift some of the country's exemptions on EU justice rules were turned down in a referendum in December last year. Like his British counterpart David Cameron, Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen wants to curb European migrants' access to child benefits, but with exports accounting for just over half of the country's economic output there are few politicians who back leaving the bloc completely. The eurosceptic Danish People's Party, one of the government's main allies in parliament, wants Denmark to obtain further EU opt-outs in case of a Brexit, as it believes Britain would then obtain a "hybrid" agreement with the bloc rather than leave completely. (AFP)

Danish daily urges Britain to 'remain'

George Soros, the billionaire who earned fame by betting against the Pound in 1992, said that a British vote on Thursday to leave the European Union (EU) would trigger a bigger and more disruptive sterling devaluation than the fall on Black Wednesday. 
 
Soros used Quantum Fund in 1992 to bet successfully that sterling was overvalued against the Deutsche Mark, forcing then-Prime Minister John Major to pull the Pound out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM). 
 
Soros, in an opinion piece in the Guardian newspaper, said that in the event of a BREXIT, the Pound would fall by at least 15 per cent, and possibly more than 20 per cent, to below $1.15 from its current level of around $1.46. 
 
&quot;The value of the Pound would decline precipitously. It would also have an immediate and dramatic impact on financial markets, investment, prices and jobs,&quot; Soros, who is 85, said in the Guardian. 
 
&quot;I would expect this devaluation to be bigger and also more disruptive than the 15 per cent devaluation that occurred in September 1992, when I was fortunate enough to make a substantial profit for my hedge fund investors.&quot; 
 
Soros, ranked as the world&#39;s 23rd richest person by Forbes magazine with a fortune of $24.9 billion, said the Bank of England would not cut rates after a BREXIT and that there would be few monetary policy tools left to ease a recession or a fall in British house prices. 
 
He also pointed to the &quot;very large&quot; current account deficit in the United Kingdom and said a post-BREXIT devaluation would be unlikely to improve manufacturing as trading conditions would be too uncertain to undertake new investments or hire workers. 
 
Hungarian-born Soros said the scale of the sterling devaluation would compare with 1967, when then-Prime Minister Harold Wilson devalued the pound to $2.40 from $2.80. 
 
Speculators, Soros said, would be eager to exploit a BREXIT situation to profit. 
 
&quot;Today, there are speculative forces in the markets much bigger and more powerful. And they will be eager to exploit any miscalculations by the British government or British voters,&quot; Soros said. 
 
&quot;BREXIT would make some people very rich &ndash; but most voters considerably poorer,&quot; Soros said. 
 
BREXIT WORRY 
 
Members of Britain&#39;s Leave campaign say some bankers, big companies and politicians are trying to scare British voters with overblown warnings about the financial and economic impact of a BREXIT. 
 
Justice Secretary Michael Gove, one of the leading members of the Vote Leave campaign, dismissed Soros&#39;s warning, saying that the billionaire had advocated British membership of the euro zone. 
 
&quot;The truth is that economic forecasters like George Soros have got things wrong in the past. They were the people who argued that we should join the single currency, the single currency as you know has brought economic misery,&quot; Gove told BBC radio. 
 
Opponents of EU membership say Britain could prosper if it cut itself free from what they portray as a doomed German-dominated project in excessive debt-funded welfare spending. 
 
The world&#39;s biggest banks including Citi and Goldman Sachs will draft in senior traders to work through the night following Britain&#39;s referendum on EU membership, set to be among the most volatile 24 hours for markets in a quarter of a century. 
 
A vote to leave the EU on June 23 would spook investors by undermining post-World War II attempts at European integration and placing a question mark over the future of the United Kingdom and its $2.9 trillion economy. 
 
Citi, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds are among those banks planning to have senior staff and traders working or on call in London as results start to dribble in after polls close at 2100 GMT, according to sources. 
 
&quot;British voters are now grossly underestimating the true costs of Brexit,&quot; Soros said. &quot;Too many believe that a vote to leave the EU will have no effect on their personal financial position. This is wishful thinking.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

Soros, world's 23rd richest man who earned fame and fortune by betting against the Pound in 1992, says Brexit will make most voters 'poorer'

George Soros, the billionaire who earned fame by betting against the Pound in 1992, said that a British vote on Thursday to leave the European Union (EU) would trigger a bigger and more disruptive sterling devaluation than the fall on Black Wednesday. Soros used Quantum Fund in 1992 to bet successfully that sterling was overvalued against the Deutsche Mark, forcing then-Prime Minister John Major to pull the Pound out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM). Soros, in an opinion piece in the Guardian newspaper, said that in the event of a BREXIT, the Pound would fall by at least 15 per cent, and possibly more than 20 per cent, to below $1.15 from its current level of around $1.46. "The value of the Pound would decline precipitously. It would also have an immediate and dramatic impact on financial markets, investment, prices and jobs," Soros, who is 85, said in the Guardian. "I would expect this devaluation to be bigger and also more disruptive than the 15 per cent devaluation that occurred in September 1992, when I was fortunate enough to make a substantial profit for my hedge fund investors." Soros, ranked as the world's 23rd richest person by Forbes magazine with a fortune of $24.9 billion, said the Bank of England would not cut rates after a BREXIT and that there would be few monetary policy tools left to ease a recession or a fall in British house prices. He also pointed to the "very large" current account deficit in the United Kingdom and said a post-BREXIT devaluation would be unlikely to improve manufacturing as trading conditions would be too uncertain to undertake new investments or hire workers. Hungarian-born Soros said the scale of the sterling devaluation would compare with 1967, when then-Prime Minister Harold Wilson devalued the pound to $2.40 from $2.80. Speculators, Soros said, would be eager to exploit a BREXIT situation to profit. "Today, there are speculative forces in the markets much bigger and more powerful. And they will be eager to exploit any miscalculations by the British government or British voters," Soros said. "BREXIT would make some people very rich – but most voters considerably poorer," Soros said. BREXIT WORRY Members of Britain's Leave campaign say some bankers, big companies and politicians are trying to scare British voters with overblown warnings about the financial and economic impact of a BREXIT. Justice Secretary Michael Gove, one of the leading members of the Vote Leave campaign, dismissed Soros's warning, saying that the billionaire had advocated British membership of the euro zone. "The truth is that economic forecasters like George Soros have got things wrong in the past. They were the people who argued that we should join the single currency, the single currency as you know has brought economic misery," Gove told BBC radio. Opponents of EU membership say Britain could prosper if it cut itself free from what they portray as a doomed German-dominated project in excessive debt-funded welfare spending. The world's biggest banks including Citi and Goldman Sachs will draft in senior traders to work through the night following Britain's referendum on EU membership, set to be among the most volatile 24 hours for markets in a quarter of a century. A vote to leave the EU on June 23 would spook investors by undermining post-World War II attempts at European integration and placing a question mark over the future of the United Kingdom and its $2.9 trillion economy. Citi, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds are among those banks planning to have senior staff and traders working or on call in London as results start to dribble in after polls close at 2100 GMT, according to sources. "British voters are now grossly underestimating the true costs of Brexit," Soros said. "Too many believe that a vote to leave the EU will have no effect on their personal financial position. This is wishful thinking." (Reuters)

British Pound fall after Brexit would be bigger, more disruptive than 'Black Wednesday', says Soros

In the run upto EU referedum slated for Thursday and likelihood of Brexit, speculations are rife that leaving the European Union would be a shock for the EU and the global economy.&nbsp; 
 
Some analysts warn of a potential &quot;disintegration&quot; of the EU as remaining countries seek to renegotiate their own relationships with Brussels. 
 
Last week, Germany&#39;s Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier stressed, &quot;It would be a shock for the EU that would require mutual assurances that the EU continues to stick together and that a very successful decades-long process of integration doesn&#39;t in the end turn into disintegration.&quot; 
 
Here are some of the possible knock-on effects of a British departure from the European Union, or Brexit: 
 
&lsquo;Cameron wouldn&rsquo;t last&rsquo;: Conservative veteran Kenneth Clarke has warned that Cameron &quot;wouldn&#39;t last 30 seconds&quot; if Britons vote to leave the EU. 
 
The bookmakers&#39; favourite to replace him is believed to be former London mayor Boris Johnson, the &quot;Leave&quot; camp figurehead. 
 
Second referendum in Scotland: Following the British exit from the EU, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon may launch a second referendum on independence. 
 
This time, Scotland would possibly vote to secede from the United Kingdom, fracturing the UK. Further, Northern Ireland would also be isolated from its EU land neighbour, the Republic of Ireland, and cross-border trade could plunge. 
 
Former British prime ministers John Major and Tony Blair said it would be &quot;difficult if not impossible&quot; to maintain a free-travel area between the neighbours. 
 
The two men, who were key players in bringing an end to sectarian violence in Northern Ireland, also warned that Brexit could put the peace process at risk. 
 
Exit negotiations between London and Brussels: An onset of complicated exit negotiations may begin between London and Brussels, with access to the single market the main bone of contention. 
 
European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker has already said Britain would be &quot;a third party, who we won&#39;t be bending over backwards for.&quot; 
 
More so, WTO Director General Roberto Azevedo said the process could take up to 10 years, and that it &quot;could take quite some time before the UK got back to a similar position that it has today,&quot; given its weak negotiating position. 
 
Recession risk? Turmoil in the markets and uncertainty in the city of London financial hub could lead to a 15-20 percent fall in the pound sterling, inflation at five percent, higher interest rates, a hike in the cost of labour, and the growth rate slowing by 1.0 to 1.5 percent, according to HSBC analysts. 
 
Also, observers are of the view that thousands of jobs in the city could be transferred to Frankfurt or Paris, top companies have warned. 
 
The Brexit camp argues that the business world would adapt quickly with Britain remaining a flexible and dynamic economy, helped by new economic partners and selective immigration. 
 
Although most economic institutions predict long-term pain for post-Brexit Britain, research consultancy Capital Economics said that it would &quot;not spell disaster&quot; indefinitely for the country&#39;s valuable financial sector, highlighting Britain&#39;s legal system, language, time-zone and large pool of skilled labour as &quot;intrinsic advantages.&quot; 
 
Drop in Immigration: Immigration from the EU is likely to drop drastically, leading to a shortage of workers in the construction and service industries. 
 
A win for Brexit in the referendum -- seen by many voters as a proxy poll on immigration -- would increase pressure on the government to impose tough caps on new arrivals. Immigration consistently tops polls of the most important issues for British voters. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
&nbsp;

Observers anticipate drop in immigration, recession risk and a possible second Scottish referendum on independence, if Britain exits from EU

In the run upto EU referedum slated for Thursday and likelihood of Brexit, speculations are rife that leaving the European Union would be a shock for the EU and the global economy. Some analysts warn of a potential "disintegration" of the EU as remaining countries seek to renegotiate their own relationships with Brussels. Last week, Germany's Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier stressed, "It would be a shock for the EU that would require mutual assurances that the EU continues to stick together and that a very successful decades-long process of integration doesn't in the end turn into disintegration." Here are some of the possible knock-on effects of a British departure from the European Union, or Brexit: ‘Cameron wouldn’t last’: Conservative veteran Kenneth Clarke has warned that Cameron "wouldn't last 30 seconds" if Britons vote to leave the EU. The bookmakers' favourite to replace him is believed to be former London mayor Boris Johnson, the "Leave" camp figurehead. Second referendum in Scotland: Following the British exit from the EU, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon may launch a second referendum on independence. This time, Scotland would possibly vote to secede from the United Kingdom, fracturing the UK. Further, Northern Ireland would also be isolated from its EU land neighbour, the Republic of Ireland, and cross-border trade could plunge. Former British prime ministers John Major and Tony Blair said it would be "difficult if not impossible" to maintain a free-travel area between the neighbours. The two men, who were key players in bringing an end to sectarian violence in Northern Ireland, also warned that Brexit could put the peace process at risk. Exit negotiations between London and Brussels: An onset of complicated exit negotiations may begin between London and Brussels, with access to the single market the main bone of contention. European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker has already said Britain would be "a third party, who we won't be bending over backwards for." More so, WTO Director General Roberto Azevedo said the process could take up to 10 years, and that it "could take quite some time before the UK got back to a similar position that it has today," given its weak negotiating position. Recession risk? Turmoil in the markets and uncertainty in the city of London financial hub could lead to a 15-20 percent fall in the pound sterling, inflation at five percent, higher interest rates, a hike in the cost of labour, and the growth rate slowing by 1.0 to 1.5 percent, according to HSBC analysts. Also, observers are of the view that thousands of jobs in the city could be transferred to Frankfurt or Paris, top companies have warned. The Brexit camp argues that the business world would adapt quickly with Britain remaining a flexible and dynamic economy, helped by new economic partners and selective immigration. Although most economic institutions predict long-term pain for post-Brexit Britain, research consultancy Capital Economics said that it would "not spell disaster" indefinitely for the country's valuable financial sector, highlighting Britain's legal system, language, time-zone and large pool of skilled labour as "intrinsic advantages." Drop in Immigration: Immigration from the EU is likely to drop drastically, leading to a shortage of workers in the construction and service industries. A win for Brexit in the referendum -- seen by many voters as a proxy poll on immigration -- would increase pressure on the government to impose tough caps on new arrivals. Immigration consistently tops polls of the most important issues for British voters.

Five possible knock-on effects of Brexit?

Asian shares rose after a tentative start on Tuesday, cautiously extending a rally triggered by growing expectations that British voters will opt to remain in the European Union (EU) in this week&#39;s referendum. 
 
Morgan Stanley Capital Investment&#39;s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up by 0.2 per cent. 
 
Investors remain wary ahead of Thursday&#39;s British vote, as well as Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen&#39;s two-day testimony before Congress starting later on Tuesday, as she might offer clues on the timing of the next US interest rate increase. 
 
&quot;With Yellen&#39;s congressional testimony and the UK referendum on our doorstep, markets all around are exercising caution,&quot; said Andrew Meredith, co-managing director at Tyton Capital Advisors in Tokyo. 
 
Bookmakers&#39; odds have also shown &quot;Remain&quot; gaining traction in Britain&#39;s referendum, with Betfair putting the implied probability of such an outcome at 72 per cent on Monday, up from 60-67 per cent on Friday. 
 
Two of the latest polls showed the &quot;Remain&quot; camp in the lead, reversing a recent rise in support for pulling out and prompting a rally in global equities and the pound. 
 
&quot;The polls were not supposed to influence as much as they have, but overnight we have seen a rampant position adjustment and an unwind of Brexit hedges,&quot; wrote Chris Weston, chief market strategist at IG in Melbourne. 
 
Japan&#39;s Nikkei stock index reversed early losses and added 1 per cent. 
 
A Reuters poll showed that confidence at Japanese manufacturers inched up in June from the prior month&#39;s three-year low and is seen rising only slightly ahead, reflecting worries about the yen&#39;s rise as Britain decides whether or not to leave the EU. 
 
Minutes of the Bank of Japan&#39;s April meeting released on Tuesday showed policymakers believe overseas economies continue to pose downside risks to Japan&#39;s economy and prices. 
 
The Pound was steady on the day at $1.4660 after it rose as high as $1.4721 on Monday, extending a recovery from last Thursday&#39;s more than two-month trough of $1.4013. 
 
The Dollar added 0.2 percent to 104.13 Yen, moving away from Thursday&#39;s nearly two-year low of 103.55 that was hit after the Bank of Japan held policy steady, disappointing investors hoping for more stimulus. 
 
Finance Minister Taro Aso said on Tuesday that Japan would respond to rapid currency moves, although he said the country would not intervene in the market so &quot;easily.&quot; 
 
The Euro gained 0.2 per cent to $1.1331. 
 
Later in the session, Germany&#39;s constitutional court will rule on the emergency bond-buying plan devised by the European Central Bank (ECB) during the financial crisis. An outright rejection of the programme is viewed as unlikely, but the ruling could potentially upset the ECB&#39;s current programme and roil markets. 
 
Crude oil futures gave back some of their gains after surging 3 per cent on Monday as Brexit fears waned. 
 
Brent crude shed 0.5 per cent to $50.41 a barrel, while US crude was down 0.4 per cent at $49.18. 
 
Spot gold also inched lower, down 0.2 per cent to $1,286.11 an ounce.

Two of the latest polls show the 'Remain' camp in the lead and prompting a rally in global equities and the Pound

Asian shares rose after a tentative start on Tuesday, cautiously extending a rally triggered by growing expectations that British voters will opt to remain in the European Union (EU) in this week's referendum. Morgan Stanley Capital Investment's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up by 0.2 per cent. Investors remain wary ahead of Thursday's British vote, as well as Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen's two-day testimony before Congress starting later on Tuesday, as she might offer clues on the timing of the next US interest rate increase. "With Yellen's congressional testimony and the UK referendum on our doorstep, markets all around are exercising caution," said Andrew Meredith, co-managing director at Tyton Capital Advisors in Tokyo. Bookmakers' odds have also shown "Remain" gaining traction in Britain's referendum, with Betfair putting the implied probability of such an outcome at 72 per cent on Monday, up from 60-67 per cent on Friday. Two of the latest polls showed the "Remain" camp in the lead, reversing a recent rise in support for pulling out and prompting a rally in global equities and the pound. "The polls were not supposed to influence as much as they have, but overnight we have seen a rampant position adjustment and an unwind of Brexit hedges," wrote Chris Weston, chief market strategist at IG in Melbourne. Japan's Nikkei stock index reversed early losses and added 1 per cent. A Reuters poll showed that confidence at Japanese manufacturers inched up in June from the prior month's three-year low and is seen rising only slightly ahead, reflecting worries about the yen's rise as Britain decides whether or not to leave the EU. Minutes of the Bank of Japan's April meeting released on Tuesday showed policymakers believe overseas economies continue to pose downside risks to Japan's economy and prices. The Pound was steady on the day at $1.4660 after it rose as high as $1.4721 on Monday, extending a recovery from last Thursday's more than two-month trough of $1.4013. The Dollar added 0.2 percent to 104.13 Yen, moving away from Thursday's nearly two-year low of 103.55 that was hit after the Bank of Japan held policy steady, disappointing investors hoping for more stimulus. Finance Minister Taro Aso said on Tuesday that Japan would respond to rapid currency moves, although he said the country would not intervene in the market so "easily." The Euro gained 0.2 per cent to $1.1331. Later in the session, Germany's constitutional court will rule on the emergency bond-buying plan devised by the European Central Bank (ECB) during the financial crisis. An outright rejection of the programme is viewed as unlikely, but the ruling could potentially upset the ECB's current programme and roil markets. Crude oil futures gave back some of their gains after surging 3 per cent on Monday as Brexit fears waned. Brent crude shed 0.5 per cent to $50.41 a barrel, while US crude was down 0.4 per cent at $49.18. Spot gold also inched lower, down 0.2 per cent to $1,286.11 an ounce.

Asian shares rise as Britain expected to stay in EU

A favourite of 19th century miners who took them down the pit and a popular lunch to this day, the Cornish pasty and other delicacies with EU protected status could be threatened if Britain leaves the bloc. 
 
The pasty - a D-shape of pastry filled with beef, potato, swede, onion and seasoning - has been given protected geographical indication (PGI) status by the European Union as a mark of quality. 
 
In Cornwall, southwest England, where the pasty is a symbol of local identity as well as a tasty delicacy, some manufacturers are wary of what will happen. 
 
Marion Symonds, boss of Portreath Bakery, said that if the snacks lost the PGI status they gained in 2011, similar products made outside Cornwall could also be called Cornish pasties, compromising quality. 
 
&quot;In Cornwall, you&#39;d never get a pasty with a carrot in it because it&#39;s taboo,&quot; Symonds told AFP. 
 
&quot;But if you went out of county - and I&#39;ve seen it myself, in London and all sorts of places - where they try to do a replica of our pasty, it&#39;s just got mush in the middle.&quot; 
 
Other British foodstuffs given protected PGI status include Scotch whisky and Melton Mowbray pork pies. 
 
Elsewhere in the EU, Italian balsamic vinegar from Modena and German beer from Munich have PGI status. 
 
The Cornish pasty industry is worth an estimated $90 million a year and employs at least 2,000 people in an area where, due to the tourist trade, work is often seasonal. 
 
Symonds, who has opened what claims to be the world&#39;s first drive-through Cornish pasty bakery, fears such success could be hit if it lost its EU status. 
 
&quot;We wouldn&#39;t have a hope and it wouldn&#39;t be right,&quot; she added. 
 
Exported round the globe 
 
Legend has it that Cornish pasties were popularised by tin miners, who ate them underground holding the crust before discarding it to avoid arsenic poisoning. 
 
Miners took pasty recipes with them around the world as they travelled to work in countries like Australia and Mexico, where they are still eaten to this day. 
 
The Cornish Pasty Association, a body which represents the local industry, this month declared its support for EU membership, saying it would be &quot;wholly inappropriate&quot; to risk the hard-earned status. 
 
Prime Minister David Cameron has also warned that the status of British regional foods could be jeopardised by leaving the EU. 
 
&quot;Remain&quot; campaigners like Cameron are not the only ones seeking to appropriate the humble pasty. 
 
Brexit backer Boris Johnson, the former mayor of London, brandished one in a bid to express solidarity for the southwest as he began a campaign bus tour of the country in Cornwall last month. 
 
Intellectual property lawyers say it is hard to know whether British PGI foods would lose their protected status if it left the EU as no country has ever withdrawn before. 
 
They predict a period of uncertainty but suggest it could eventually be possible to reach a reciprocal arrangement between Britain and the EU to maintain the current regime. 
 
Not all Cornish pasty makers believe that the EU is good for them, protected status or not. 
 
John Beard set up the Pasty Line, which makes Cornish pasties for bakeries, pubs and nursing homes, with his now ex-wife in 1993. 
 
While Beard acknowledged that PGI status is &quot;very useful&quot;, he said the amount of bureaucracy which the EU imposes on businesses will make him vote to leave. 
 
&quot;They cause us a lot of heartache from red tape,&quot; he told AFP, as staff behind him filled rows of pasties with uncooked beef and vegetables before they were crimped, glazed and baked. 
 
&quot;I would love to have a bit of credit for some common sense but that&#39;s just not an issue when you&#39;ve got rules and regulations made by someone lots of miles away,&quot; he added. 
(AFP)

If Britain decides to leave the EU, the Cornish pasty could lose its protected geographical indication status which is a mark of quality

A favourite of 19th century miners who took them down the pit and a popular lunch to this day, the Cornish pasty and other delicacies with EU protected status could be threatened if Britain leaves the bloc. The pasty - a D-shape of pastry filled with beef, potato, swede, onion and seasoning - has been given protected geographical indication (PGI) status by the European Union as a mark of quality. In Cornwall, southwest England, where the pasty is a symbol of local identity as well as a tasty delicacy, some manufacturers are wary of what will happen. Marion Symonds, boss of Portreath Bakery, said that if the snacks lost the PGI status they gained in 2011, similar products made outside Cornwall could also be called Cornish pasties, compromising quality. "In Cornwall, you'd never get a pasty with a carrot in it because it's taboo," Symonds told AFP. "But if you went out of county - and I've seen it myself, in London and all sorts of places - where they try to do a replica of our pasty, it's just got mush in the middle." Other British foodstuffs given protected PGI status include Scotch whisky and Melton Mowbray pork pies. Elsewhere in the EU, Italian balsamic vinegar from Modena and German beer from Munich have PGI status. The Cornish pasty industry is worth an estimated $90 million a year and employs at least 2,000 people in an area where, due to the tourist trade, work is often seasonal. Symonds, who has opened what claims to be the world's first drive-through Cornish pasty bakery, fears such success could be hit if it lost its EU status. "We wouldn't have a hope and it wouldn't be right," she added. Exported round the globe Legend has it that Cornish pasties were popularised by tin miners, who ate them underground holding the crust before discarding it to avoid arsenic poisoning. Miners took pasty recipes with them around the world as they travelled to work in countries like Australia and Mexico, where they are still eaten to this day. The Cornish Pasty Association, a body which represents the local industry, this month declared its support for EU membership, saying it would be "wholly inappropriate" to risk the hard-earned status. Prime Minister David Cameron has also warned that the status of British regional foods could be jeopardised by leaving the EU. "Remain" campaigners like Cameron are not the only ones seeking to appropriate the humble pasty. Brexit backer Boris Johnson, the former mayor of London, brandished one in a bid to express solidarity for the southwest as he began a campaign bus tour of the country in Cornwall last month. Intellectual property lawyers say it is hard to know whether British PGI foods would lose their protected status if it left the EU as no country has ever withdrawn before. They predict a period of uncertainty but suggest it could eventually be possible to reach a reciprocal arrangement between Britain and the EU to maintain the current regime. Not all Cornish pasty makers believe that the EU is good for them, protected status or not. John Beard set up the Pasty Line, which makes Cornish pasties for bakeries, pubs and nursing homes, with his now ex-wife in 1993. While Beard acknowledged that PGI status is "very useful", he said the amount of bureaucracy which the EU imposes on businesses will make him vote to leave. "They cause us a lot of heartache from red tape," he told AFP, as staff behind him filled rows of pasties with uncooked beef and vegetables before they were crimped, glazed and baked. "I would love to have a bit of credit for some common sense but that's just not an issue when you've got rules and regulations made by someone lots of miles away," he added. (AFP)

Cornish pasties: the tastiest victims of a Brexit?

Oil rallied on Monday, lifted by a wave of investor confidence and a weaker dollar after polls showed a diminishing chance that Britain may vote to leave the European Union later this week. 
 
August Brent crude futures were up 90 cents at $50.07 a barrel by 0843 GMT, set for a gain of 6 per cent in two trading days. New York Mercantile Exchange crude for July delivery, which expires on Tuesday, was up 80 cents at $48.78 a barrel. 
 
Campaigning for Britain&#39;s vote on EU membership resumed on Sunday after a three-day hiatus prompted by the killing of a pro-EU lawmaker. 
 
Three opinion polls ahead of Thursday&#39;s vote showed the &#39;Remain&#39; camp recovering some momentum, although the overall picture remained one of an evenly split electorate. 
 
Perceived safe havens such as gold, the US dollar, German bonds and the Swiss franc came under pressure, while oil looked set for its largest two-day rise in a month and the likes of copper and equities rallied. 
 
&quot;For oil as a risky asset, what we&#39;ve seen are intraday gyrations that are coming from the spillover effects of &#39;risk-on/risk-off&#39; moves that follow the poll numbers,&quot; BNP Paribas global head of commodity strategy Harry Tchilinguirian said. 
 
The pound climbed 1.6 per cent to $1.4589, extending a recovery from last Thursday&#39;s more than two-month trough of $1.4013. 
 
&quot;With Brexit dominating the market headlines, there might be moves in the US dollar that drive the oil market at least until we get that out of the way,&quot; said Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s likely to be a nervous and skittish week&#39;s trading.&quot; 
 
Oil prices continued to recover despite data showing US energy firms adding oil rigs for a third week in a row, suggesting higher production to come. 
 
Oil services firm Baker Hughes reported nine rig additions in the week to June 17. 
 
Aside from Brexit concerns, the market is likely to be caught in a range as any gains would likely be limited by the return of more shale drillers in the United States, McCarthy said. 
 
&quot;Capping market gains at the moment is the potential for those very agile US producers to jump back into production should we see any further substantial rises,&quot; he said.

August Brent crude futures were up 90 cents at $50.07 a barrel

Oil rallied on Monday, lifted by a wave of investor confidence and a weaker dollar after polls showed a diminishing chance that Britain may vote to leave the European Union later this week. August Brent crude futures were up 90 cents at $50.07 a barrel by 0843 GMT, set for a gain of 6 per cent in two trading days. New York Mercantile Exchange crude for July delivery, which expires on Tuesday, was up 80 cents at $48.78 a barrel. Campaigning for Britain's vote on EU membership resumed on Sunday after a three-day hiatus prompted by the killing of a pro-EU lawmaker. Three opinion polls ahead of Thursday's vote showed the 'Remain' camp recovering some momentum, although the overall picture remained one of an evenly split electorate. Perceived safe havens such as gold, the US dollar, German bonds and the Swiss franc came under pressure, while oil looked set for its largest two-day rise in a month and the likes of copper and equities rallied. "For oil as a risky asset, what we've seen are intraday gyrations that are coming from the spillover effects of 'risk-on/risk-off' moves that follow the poll numbers," BNP Paribas global head of commodity strategy Harry Tchilinguirian said. The pound climbed 1.6 per cent to $1.4589, extending a recovery from last Thursday's more than two-month trough of $1.4013. "With Brexit dominating the market headlines, there might be moves in the US dollar that drive the oil market at least until we get that out of the way," said Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney. "It's likely to be a nervous and skittish week's trading." Oil prices continued to recover despite data showing US energy firms adding oil rigs for a third week in a row, suggesting higher production to come. Oil services firm Baker Hughes reported nine rig additions in the week to June 17. Aside from Brexit concerns, the market is likely to be caught in a range as any gains would likely be limited by the return of more shale drillers in the United States, McCarthy said. "Capping market gains at the moment is the potential for those very agile US producers to jump back into production should we see any further substantial rises," he said.

Oil rallies as polls show diminished chance that Britain will vote to leave the EU

Asia stocks were largely up today, building on gains at the end of last week as polls suggest Britain&#39;s upcoming referendum vote will result in the country staying in the European Union. 
 
Markets across the region plunged last week amid concern about a possible &quot;Brexit&quot; -- or British decision to leave the EU -- but showed some improvement on Friday as the &#39;Remain&#39; camp gained ground. 
 
The average of the last six British EU referendum polls put the &#39;Remain&#39; and &#39;Leave&#39; camps level at 50-50, excluding undecided voters, according to the What UK Thinks website. 
 
The &#39;Leave&#39; camp had been a few percentage points ahead in recent polling, but fresh surveys brought the average back to neck-and-neck, after campaigning was suspended for three days following the murder of pro-EU British lawmaker Jo Cox on Thursday. 
 
A Survation poll conducted on Friday and Saturday put &#39;Remain&#39; at 45 per cent and &#39;Leave&#39; at 42 per cent -- the reverse of its previous findings on Thursday. 
 
Tokyo was up 2.2 per cent by the break today, adding to gains of 1.07 per cent at the end of last week, and Hong Kong rose 0.73 per cent in early morning trade. Singapore and Seoul were both up more than one per cent. 
 
But in China, the Shanghai Composite Index eased 0.46 per cent while the Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on the country&#39;s second exchange, fell 0.30 per cent. 
 
Gold was down 1.12 per cent today, having hit a near two-year peak on Friday as investors sought the safe haven commodity on fears of the impact of a &#39;leave&#39; vote on the world economy. 
&#39;Risk-on move&#39; - 
The Yen eased slightly to 104.71 to the Dollar in early morning trade in Tokyo, from 104.19 Yen in New York late Friday. 
 
The Japanese currency, often seen as a safe haven, had also strengthened as concerns grew that the &quot;Leave&quot; camp was headed to victory. 
 
&quot;We are seeing a risk-on move after the latest Brexit poll,&quot; Niv Dagan, executive director at Peak Asset Management LLC in Melbourne, told Bloomberg. 
 
&quot;It may be short-lived and volatility is likely to remain high until Thursday&#39;s vote. This really could still go either way.&quot; 
 
Aside from the EU vote, eyes were on the Bombay stock exchange ahead of opening, after the popular Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan announced on Friday that he would step down when his term ends in September. 
 
Oil prices extended gains on a weaker Dollar, driving up demand for the commodity. 
 
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate was up 45 cents, or 0.94 per cent, trading at $48.43 a barrel while North Sea Brent was up 35 cents, or 0.71 per cent, trading at $49.52 a barrel. 
 
&nbsp;Key figures around 0230 GMT - 
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 2.2 per cent at 15,943.76 (break) 
 
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.46 per cent at 2871.84 
 
Hong Kong - Hang Seng: UP 0.73 per cent at 20,316.31 
 
Euro/Dollar: UP at $1.1360 from $1.1280 late Friday 
 
Pound/Dollar: UP at $1.4585 from $1.4348 
 
Dollar/Yen: UP at 104.71 Yen from 104.19 yen 
 
New York - DOW: DOWN 0.33 per cent at 17,675.16 (close) 
 
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.19 per cent at 6,021.09 (close) 
(AFP)

Markets across the region had plunged last week amid concerns that the UK might leave the European Union

Asia stocks were largely up today, building on gains at the end of last week as polls suggest Britain's upcoming referendum vote will result in the country staying in the European Union. Markets across the region plunged last week amid concern about a possible "Brexit" -- or British decision to leave the EU -- but showed some improvement on Friday as the 'Remain' camp gained ground. The average of the last six British EU referendum polls put the 'Remain' and 'Leave' camps level at 50-50, excluding undecided voters, according to the What UK Thinks website. The 'Leave' camp had been a few percentage points ahead in recent polling, but fresh surveys brought the average back to neck-and-neck, after campaigning was suspended for three days following the murder of pro-EU British lawmaker Jo Cox on Thursday. A Survation poll conducted on Friday and Saturday put 'Remain' at 45 per cent and 'Leave' at 42 per cent -- the reverse of its previous findings on Thursday. Tokyo was up 2.2 per cent by the break today, adding to gains of 1.07 per cent at the end of last week, and Hong Kong rose 0.73 per cent in early morning trade. Singapore and Seoul were both up more than one per cent. But in China, the Shanghai Composite Index eased 0.46 per cent while the Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on the country's second exchange, fell 0.30 per cent. Gold was down 1.12 per cent today, having hit a near two-year peak on Friday as investors sought the safe haven commodity on fears of the impact of a 'leave' vote on the world economy. 'Risk-on move' - The Yen eased slightly to 104.71 to the Dollar in early morning trade in Tokyo, from 104.19 Yen in New York late Friday. The Japanese currency, often seen as a safe haven, had also strengthened as concerns grew that the "Leave" camp was headed to victory. "We are seeing a risk-on move after the latest Brexit poll," Niv Dagan, executive director at Peak Asset Management LLC in Melbourne, told Bloomberg. "It may be short-lived and volatility is likely to remain high until Thursday's vote. This really could still go either way." Aside from the EU vote, eyes were on the Bombay stock exchange ahead of opening, after the popular Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan announced on Friday that he would step down when his term ends in September. Oil prices extended gains on a weaker Dollar, driving up demand for the commodity. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate was up 45 cents, or 0.94 per cent, trading at $48.43 a barrel while North Sea Brent was up 35 cents, or 0.71 per cent, trading at $49.52 a barrel. Key figures around 0230 GMT - Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 2.2 per cent at 15,943.76 (break) Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.46 per cent at 2871.84 Hong Kong - Hang Seng: UP 0.73 per cent at 20,316.31 Euro/Dollar: UP at $1.1360 from $1.1280 late Friday Pound/Dollar: UP at $1.4585 from $1.4348 Dollar/Yen: UP at 104.71 Yen from 104.19 yen New York - DOW: DOWN 0.33 per cent at 17,675.16 (close) London - FTSE 100: UP 1.19 per cent at 6,021.09 (close) (AFP)

Asian stocks up, opinion polls show Britain may remain in EU

The European Union&#39;s banking watchdog will move from London to another European capital if Britain decides to quit the bloc in a referendum this week, its chairman said in an interview published on Sunday. 
 
Britain votes on June 23 on whether to stay in the 28-member bloc, a choice with far-reaching consequences for politics, the economy, defence and diplomacy on the continent. 
 
The London-based European Banking Authority (EBA), founded in 2011 as a reaction to the global financial crisis, operates as a pan-EU regulator, writing and coordinating banking rules across the bloc. 
 
&quot;If the British should decide to leave the EU, we actually would have to move to another European capital,&quot; Andrea Enria, head of the EBA, told the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag. 
 
While betting odds have consistently indicated a vote to remain in the EU, opinion pollsters have so far painted contradictory pictures of how Britons will vote. 
 
The EBA is currently working on an EU single rulebook aimed at ensuring a level playing field for all banks across the 28-country bloc&#39;s capital market. 
 
&quot;This work needs to be completed irrespective of the result of the referendum,&quot; said Enria, an Italian national. &quot;We must ensure that there are no different rules between the countries that have the euro and those that do not have it.&quot; 
 
Enria said the European banking sector was more stable now than five years ago, but there was still need for consolidation. 
 
&quot;If you look at the balance sheets of banks, you could actually ask yourself whether such low profitability and such low return on investment are sustainable in the long term,&quot; he said. 
 
Banks should speed up their efforts to deal with non-performing loans and change their internal business culture in order to avoid future scandals and fines, Enria said. 
 
That banks have hardly made any progress in these two areas is the reason why the European Central Bank (ECB) is struggling to boost lending and generate more growth despite its bond-purchase programme, he added. 
(Reuters)

European Banking Authority is making arrangements to shift head office in case Britain opts out of the European union, says EBA's chairman

The European Union's banking watchdog will move from London to another European capital if Britain decides to quit the bloc in a referendum this week, its chairman said in an interview published on Sunday. Britain votes on June 23 on whether to stay in the 28-member bloc, a choice with far-reaching consequences for politics, the economy, defence and diplomacy on the continent. The London-based European Banking Authority (EBA), founded in 2011 as a reaction to the global financial crisis, operates as a pan-EU regulator, writing and coordinating banking rules across the bloc. "If the British should decide to leave the EU, we actually would have to move to another European capital," Andrea Enria, head of the EBA, told the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag. While betting odds have consistently indicated a vote to remain in the EU, opinion pollsters have so far painted contradictory pictures of how Britons will vote. The EBA is currently working on an EU single rulebook aimed at ensuring a level playing field for all banks across the 28-country bloc's capital market. "This work needs to be completed irrespective of the result of the referendum," said Enria, an Italian national. "We must ensure that there are no different rules between the countries that have the euro and those that do not have it." Enria said the European banking sector was more stable now than five years ago, but there was still need for consolidation. "If you look at the balance sheets of banks, you could actually ask yourself whether such low profitability and such low return on investment are sustainable in the long term," he said. Banks should speed up their efforts to deal with non-performing loans and change their internal business culture in order to avoid future scandals and fines, Enria said. That banks have hardly made any progress in these two areas is the reason why the European Central Bank (ECB) is struggling to boost lending and generate more growth despite its bond-purchase programme, he added. (Reuters)

EU banking watchdog to leave London in case of Brexit

<div style="text-align: justify;">If Britons vote to take their country out of the European Union on June 23, no corner of the global financial market complex will emerge unscathed. 
The invisible thread that links assets as diverse as gold, bank stocks, the Japanese Yen and government bonds would be yanked sharply by Brexit, an event the Bank of England said on Thursday risks &quot;adverse spill-overs to the global economy&quot;. 
With global interest rates and bond yields the lowest on record, central banks running low on crisis-fighting tools and the post-2008 economic recovery flagging, that thread could quickly unravel, with serious consequences for all markets.&nbsp; 
So why will the will of one country&#39;s people in one referendum have such a profound impact on global markets? 
The answer is partly how inter-connected global markets are, and partly timing - the world economic cycle is already very long in the tooth and central banks have far fewer options open to them after nearly a decade of extraordinary policy support. 
Interest rates, yields 
 
Global interest rates are their lowest for 5,000 years, according to Bank of America, but central banks could still cut them further. That could mean the US&nbsp;Federal Reserve reversing its slow-starting tightening cycle, and European Central Bank and Bank of Japan rates going deeper into negative territory. 
Lower rates would also depress bond yields even further, tightening the screw on central and commercial banks. 
 
Over $8 trillion worth of sovereign bonds already carry a negative yield, according to JP Morgan. This means holders of Japanese, German and Swiss debt are paying these governments for the privilege of lending to them, in some cases out to 20 years. 
 
They are willing to accept they will not get all their money back. Even deeper negative yields would increase these losses, raising further doubt that these are truly &quot;safe haven&quot; assets. 
 
But the immediate economic and political uncertainty after a Brexit vote would likely be so great that demand for these bonds would rise anyway, pulling yields even lower. Yield curves, the difference between short- and longer-dated bond borrowing costs, would flatten further. 
 
They are already their flattest for years around the developed world, meaning the premium investors expect for holding longer-dated bonds is shrinking. This is often an ominous signal of low inflation or deflation, and slowing economic growth or possibly recession. 
 
If &quot;core&quot; bond yields would likely fall, yields on lower-rated and riskier bonds would likely rise, widening the spread between the two. This would increase the financing pressure on a wide range of companies around the world and governments in euro zone &quot;periphery&quot; countries like Greece, Italy and Spain. 
 
Banks - Central and Commercial 
 
Flat yield curves are bad news for banks, who make money from borrowing short-term at low rates and lending longer-term at higher rates. Financial stocks have been hit hard this year as the curve flattening has accelerated. 
 
Euro zone banks are down 30 per cent this year, Japanese banks 35 per cent, UK banks 20 per cent, and US banks 10 per cent. 
 
Banks are also being squeezed by negative deposit rates. The ECB, Bank of Japan and Swiss National Bank all charge banks for depositing cash. 
 
It may even become cheaper for banks to put billions of yen, Euros or Francs of their customers&#39; cash in vaults- a possibility German lender Commerzbank is examining. 
 
As for central banks, any move deeper into the uncharted world of negative interest rates would be taken reluctantly. 
 
In the case of the ECB, declining yields would further cut the amount of bonds eligible for purchase as part of its quantitative easing stimulus programme. That would make its inflation target of just under 2 per cent much harder to achieve, in turn putting its credibility under even greater scrutiny. 
 
Financial Planning 
 
Just as the 2007-08 financial crisis was caused by unprecedented stress in the banking system, analysts fear Brexit fallout could again threaten to block the global financial system&#39;s plumbing. 
 
Banks have recovered from 2007-08, but stresses are already appearing in more obscure pockets of dollar-based FX and rates markets that are hitting levels more associated with periods of crisis. The premium for Dollars over Yen in the cross currency basis market is its highest in years. 
 
Spreads between Libor rates and overnight index swap (OIS) rates, broadly a measure of investors&#39; perception of credit risk in the banking system, are also widening. In normal conditions, Libor/OIS spreads should be virtually zero. 
 
Stocks 
 
World stocks are in their longest bull run in history that began on March 9, 2009. But Wall Street&#39;s peak was reached over a year ago, profit growth has slumped, and companies are reluctant to reinvest their record cash piles. 
 
European stocks are down 13 per cent this year, Japan down 20 per cent, and Wall Street is flat. Would they be able to withstand the political, economic and investment shock a Brexit would likely deliver, especially with risk appetite so fragile? 
 
Currencies 
 
Like 2008, a vote for Brexit would almost certainly increase demand for the pre-eminent currency in global trade, banking and financial market trading: the Dollar. 
 
Dollar credit to non-US banks stands at almost $10 trillion, according to the Bank for International Settlements, of which $3.3 trillion is in emerging markets. A stronger Dollar will increase the overall debt burden for these companies, and many emerging market countries, who would be forced to draw down their FX reserves to counter the expected capital outflow and downward pressure on their currencies. 
 
Japan&#39;s Yen, another safe-haven currency, would probably rise too, perhaps as much as 14 per cent, according to Goldman Sachs. This would not be welcome in Tokyo, where policymakers are struggling to kill off deflation once and for all, stoke inflation, reflate the economy and heal the banking system. A higher exchange rate would be damaging on all those fronts. 
 
(Reuters)</div>

World stocks are in their longest bull run in history that began on 9 March, 2009

If Britons vote to take their country out of the European Union on June 23, no corner of the global financial market complex will emerge unscathed. The invisible thread that links assets as diverse as gold, bank stocks, the Japanese Yen and government bonds would be yanked sharply by Brexit, an event the Bank of England said on Thursday risks "adverse spill-overs to the global economy". With global interest rates and bond yields the lowest on record, central banks running low on crisis-fighting tools and the post-2008 economic recovery flagging, that thread could quickly unravel, with serious consequences for all markets. So why will the will of one country's people in one referendum have such a profound impact on global markets? The answer is partly how inter-connected global markets are, and partly timing - the world economic cycle is already very long in the tooth and central banks have far fewer options open to them after nearly a decade of extraordinary policy support. Interest rates, yields Global interest rates are their lowest for 5,000 years, according to Bank of America, but central banks could still cut them further. That could mean the US Federal Reserve reversing its slow-starting tightening cycle, and European Central Bank and Bank of Japan rates going deeper into negative territory. Lower rates would also depress bond yields even further, tightening the screw on central and commercial banks. Over $8 trillion worth of sovereign bonds already carry a negative yield, according to JP Morgan. This means holders of Japanese, German and Swiss debt are paying these governments for the privilege of lending to them, in some cases out to 20 years. They are willing to accept they will not get all their money back. Even deeper negative yields would increase these losses, raising further doubt that these are truly "safe haven" assets. But the immediate economic and political uncertainty after a Brexit vote would likely be so great that demand for these bonds would rise anyway, pulling yields even lower. Yield curves, the difference between short- and longer-dated bond borrowing costs, would flatten further. They are already their flattest for years around the developed world, meaning the premium investors expect for holding longer-dated bonds is shrinking. This is often an ominous signal of low inflation or deflation, and slowing economic growth or possibly recession. If "core" bond yields would likely fall, yields on lower-rated and riskier bonds would likely rise, widening the spread between the two. This would increase the financing pressure on a wide range of companies around the world and governments in euro zone "periphery" countries like Greece, Italy and Spain. Banks - Central and Commercial Flat yield curves are bad news for banks, who make money from borrowing short-term at low rates and lending longer-term at higher rates. Financial stocks have been hit hard this year as the curve flattening has accelerated. Euro zone banks are down 30 per cent this year, Japanese banks 35 per cent, UK banks 20 per cent, and US banks 10 per cent. Banks are also being squeezed by negative deposit rates. The ECB, Bank of Japan and Swiss National Bank all charge banks for depositing cash. It may even become cheaper for banks to put billions of yen, Euros or Francs of their customers' cash in vaults- a possibility German lender Commerzbank is examining. As for central banks, any move deeper into the uncharted world of negative interest rates would be taken reluctantly. In the case of the ECB, declining yields would further cut the amount of bonds eligible for purchase as part of its quantitative easing stimulus programme. That would make its inflation target of just under 2 per cent much harder to achieve, in turn putting its credibility under even greater scrutiny. Financial Planning Just as the 2007-08 financial crisis was caused by unprecedented stress in the banking system, analysts fear Brexit fallout could again threaten to block the global financial system's plumbing. Banks have recovered from 2007-08, but stresses are already appearing in more obscure pockets of dollar-based FX and rates markets that are hitting levels more associated with periods of crisis. The premium for Dollars over Yen in the cross currency basis market is its highest in years. Spreads between Libor rates and overnight index swap (OIS) rates, broadly a measure of investors' perception of credit risk in the banking system, are also widening. In normal conditions, Libor/OIS spreads should be virtually zero. Stocks World stocks are in their longest bull run in history that began on March 9, 2009. But Wall Street's peak was reached over a year ago, profit growth has slumped, and companies are reluctant to reinvest their record cash piles. European stocks are down 13 per cent this year, Japan down 20 per cent, and Wall Street is flat. Would they be able to withstand the political, economic and investment shock a Brexit would likely deliver, especially with risk appetite so fragile? Currencies Like 2008, a vote for Brexit would almost certainly increase demand for the pre-eminent currency in global trade, banking and financial market trading: the Dollar. Dollar credit to non-US banks stands at almost $10 trillion, according to the Bank for International Settlements, of which $3.3 trillion is in emerging markets. A stronger Dollar will increase the overall debt burden for these companies, and many emerging market countries, who would be forced to draw down their FX reserves to counter the expected capital outflow and downward pressure on their currencies. Japan's Yen, another safe-haven currency, would probably rise too, perhaps as much as 14 per cent, according to Goldman Sachs. This would not be welcome in Tokyo, where policymakers are struggling to kill off deflation once and for all, stoke inflation, reflate the economy and heal the banking system. A higher exchange rate would be damaging on all those fronts. (Reuters)

Tracing global market thread that could be unraveled by Brexit

<div style="text-align: justify;">Reeling from the murder of Labour MP Jo Cox, the EU referendum campaign&nbsp;resumed on Sunday, with just four days to go until the critical vote that will shape Britain&#39;s future. 
 
The Remain and Leave camps suspended campaign&nbsp;for three days after the killing of Cox on Thursday. A 52-year-old man has appeared in court charged with her murder. 
 
The polls too close to call, leaders were to hit the television studios on Sunday to begin their final push for votes. 
 
Prime Minister David Cameron, who wants Britain to stay in the European Union, said the country was facing an &quot;an existential choice&quot; from which there would be &quot;no turning back&quot;. 
 
Meanwhile Britain&#39;s Sunday newspapers picked sides in their final editions before the referendum. 
 
The Mail on Sunday and The Observer gave their support to the Remain camp, while The Sunday Times and The Sunday Telegraph broadsheets backed quitting the EU. 
 
Resuming the campaign, Cameron said the British economy &quot;hangs in the balance&quot;, with trade and investment set to suffer in the event of a Leave vote and a &quot;probable recession&quot; that would leave the UK &quot;permanently poorer&quot;. 
 
&quot;If you&#39;re not sure, don&#39;t take the risk of leaving. If you don&#39;t know, don&#39;t go,&quot; he wrote in The Sunday Telegraph. 
 
&quot;If we were to leave and it quickly turned out to be a big mistake, there wouldn&#39;t be a way of changing our minds and having another go. This is it.&quot; 
 
Cameron, finance minister George Osborne and opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, from the Remain camp, were all set for major TV appearances on Sunday. 
 
Meanwhile Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party, was set to do the same for the Leave camp. 
 
Remain poll rise after murder 
 
The What UK Thinks website&#39;s average of the last six polls, conducted between June 10 and Saturday, put the Remain and Leave camps absolutely level on 50-50, excluding undecided voters. 
 
The Leave camp had been a few percentage points ahead in recent polling, but fresh surveys showing a rise in support for remaining brought the average neck-and-neck. 
 
They included the first carried out since Cox&#39;s murder: a Survation poll on Friday and Saturday that put the Remain on 45 per cent and Leave on 42 per cent. 
 
The results were the reverse on Survation&#39;s Thursday poll, which had Leave ahead by 45 to 42. 
 
Labour MP Cox had campaigned for Britain to stay in the EU. 
 
She was shot and stabbed in the street in what police called a &quot;targeted&quot; daylight attack in her constituency. 
 
Cox&#39;s alleged killer Thomas Mair said &quot;Death to traitors, freedom for Britain&quot; when asked to give his name at Westminster Magistrates Court in London on Saturday. 
 
He was remanded in custody until his next court appearance on Monday at England&#39;s central criminal court, and a psychiatric report has been requested. 
 
Cox, 41, is survived by her husband Brendan and their children Lejla, five, and three-year-old Cuillin. 
 
The murder, the first of a sitting British member of parliament since 1990, sent shockwaves around the world, drawing tributes from leaders including US President Barack Obama. 
 
A fund created in Cox&#39;s memory by her friends and family has raised more than $820,000&nbsp;for charities close to her heart. 
 
Weekly newspapers split 
 
In making their decisions, Britain&#39;s Sunday newspapers tried to sway their readers in how to vote. 
 
The Mail On Sunday warned it was &quot;not the time to risk the peace and prosperity&quot; of the UK. 
 
&quot;Our deepest desires must somehow be moderated to suit the increasingly tough reality of a competitive world,&quot; the tabloid said. 
 
&quot;Those who would have you believe in the plucky Little England of the past are selling a dangerous illusion.&quot; 
 
The Observer said: &quot;For an international, liberal and open Britain, we need to be part of the EU.&quot; 
 
The choice was between &quot;going it alone&quot; or a &quot;messy, imperfect collective&quot;, but &quot;outside the EU, our role in the world would be diminished.&quot; 
 
The Sunday Telegraph, meanwhile, backed Brexit, declaring that the EU &quot;belongs to the past&quot;. 
 
&quot;The Leave campaign has articulated an ambitious vision for Britain as an independent nation, once again free to make its own decisions,&quot; it said. 
 
The Sunday Times said &quot;Yes, we must be prepared for difficulties, but we should hold our nerve&quot; in voting Leave. 
 
&quot;This vote may be the only opportunity we shall ever have to call a halt to the onward march of the centralising European project. 
 
&quot;We can help our friends face a better future.&quot; 
(AFP)</div>

Sunday newspapers picked sides in their final editions before the referendum. 'Plucky Little England' no longer the way ahead, said The Mail

Reeling from the murder of Labour MP Jo Cox, the EU referendum campaign resumed on Sunday, with just four days to go until the critical vote that will shape Britain's future. The Remain and Leave camps suspended campaign for three days after the killing of Cox on Thursday. A 52-year-old man has appeared in court charged with her murder. The polls too close to call, leaders were to hit the television studios on Sunday to begin their final push for votes. Prime Minister David Cameron, who wants Britain to stay in the European Union, said the country was facing an "an existential choice" from which there would be "no turning back". Meanwhile Britain's Sunday newspapers picked sides in their final editions before the referendum. The Mail on Sunday and The Observer gave their support to the Remain camp, while The Sunday Times and The Sunday Telegraph broadsheets backed quitting the EU. Resuming the campaign, Cameron said the British economy "hangs in the balance", with trade and investment set to suffer in the event of a Leave vote and a "probable recession" that would leave the UK "permanently poorer". "If you're not sure, don't take the risk of leaving. If you don't know, don't go," he wrote in The Sunday Telegraph. "If we were to leave and it quickly turned out to be a big mistake, there wouldn't be a way of changing our minds and having another go. This is it." Cameron, finance minister George Osborne and opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, from the Remain camp, were all set for major TV appearances on Sunday. Meanwhile Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party, was set to do the same for the Leave camp. Remain poll rise after murder The What UK Thinks website's average of the last six polls, conducted between June 10 and Saturday, put the Remain and Leave camps absolutely level on 50-50, excluding undecided voters. The Leave camp had been a few percentage points ahead in recent polling, but fresh surveys showing a rise in support for remaining brought the average neck-and-neck. They included the first carried out since Cox's murder: a Survation poll on Friday and Saturday that put the Remain on 45 per cent and Leave on 42 per cent. The results were the reverse on Survation's Thursday poll, which had Leave ahead by 45 to 42. Labour MP Cox had campaigned for Britain to stay in the EU. She was shot and stabbed in the street in what police called a "targeted" daylight attack in her constituency. Cox's alleged killer Thomas Mair said "Death to traitors, freedom for Britain" when asked to give his name at Westminster Magistrates Court in London on Saturday. He was remanded in custody until his next court appearance on Monday at England's central criminal court, and a psychiatric report has been requested. Cox, 41, is survived by her husband Brendan and their children Lejla, five, and three-year-old Cuillin. The murder, the first of a sitting British member of parliament since 1990, sent shockwaves around the world, drawing tributes from leaders including US President Barack Obama. A fund created in Cox's memory by her friends and family has raised more than $820,000 for charities close to her heart. Weekly newspapers split In making their decisions, Britain's Sunday newspapers tried to sway their readers in how to vote. The Mail On Sunday warned it was "not the time to risk the peace and prosperity" of the UK. "Our deepest desires must somehow be moderated to suit the increasingly tough reality of a competitive world," the tabloid said. "Those who would have you believe in the plucky Little England of the past are selling a dangerous illusion." The Observer said: "For an international, liberal and open Britain, we need to be part of the EU." The choice was between "going it alone" or a "messy, imperfect collective", but "outside the EU, our role in the world would be diminished." The Sunday Telegraph, meanwhile, backed Brexit, declaring that the EU "belongs to the past". "The Leave campaign has articulated an ambitious vision for Britain as an independent nation, once again free to make its own decisions," it said. The Sunday Times said "Yes, we must be prepared for difficulties, but we should hold our nerve" in voting Leave. "This vote may be the only opportunity we shall ever have to call a halt to the onward march of the centralising European project. "We can help our friends face a better future." (AFP)

'If you don't know, don't go,' Cameron says as Brexit campaign resumes

French economy minister Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday the European Union should act quickly and firmly if Britain votes next week to leave the European Union. 
 
Britain`s EU referendum will be held on Thursday, with an EU summit set for a few days later on June 28 at which Macron said EU leaders should take a firm stand with regard to the UK. 
 
&quot;You are in or out... The European Council should give the British an ultimatum about their intentions, and France`s president will be very clear about that,&quot; Macron said in an interview with Le Monde published Saturday. 
 
&quot;We cannot, in the interests of the EU, leave any ambiguity to linger and to let too much time pass,&quot; Macron said. 
 
If Britain leaves the bloc, &quot;the day after the exit, there will no longer be a financial passport for British establishments,&quot; he added. 
 
Macron said in his view if the British want to maintain access to the European market, they should contribute to the EU budget, just like non-members Norway and Switzerland. 
 
If London refuses, &quot;then that would be a total exit,&quot; said the economy minister, a strong EU advocate. 
 
Campaigning in Britain on the EU referendum was suspended Saturday for a third day following the killing of a pro-Europe lawmaker and amid calls for a less acrimonious political debate. 
 
The WhatUKThinks average of the last six opinion polls currently shows 52 percent of voters in favour of &quot;Leave&quot; and 48 percent for &quot;Remain&quot;, excluding undecided voters. 
(AFP)

The day after the exit, there will be no financial passport for British establishments, says French economy minister Emmanuel Macron

French economy minister Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday the European Union should act quickly and firmly if Britain votes next week to leave the European Union. Britain`s EU referendum will be held on Thursday, with an EU summit set for a few days later on June 28 at which Macron said EU leaders should take a firm stand with regard to the UK. "You are in or out... The European Council should give the British an ultimatum about their intentions, and France`s president will be very clear about that," Macron said in an interview with Le Monde published Saturday. "We cannot, in the interests of the EU, leave any ambiguity to linger and to let too much time pass," Macron said. If Britain leaves the bloc, "the day after the exit, there will no longer be a financial passport for British establishments," he added. Macron said in his view if the British want to maintain access to the European market, they should contribute to the EU budget, just like non-members Norway and Switzerland. If London refuses, "then that would be a total exit," said the economy minister, a strong EU advocate. Campaigning in Britain on the EU referendum was suspended Saturday for a third day following the killing of a pro-Europe lawmaker and amid calls for a less acrimonious political debate. The WhatUKThinks average of the last six opinion polls currently shows 52 percent of voters in favour of "Leave" and 48 percent for "Remain", excluding undecided voters. (AFP)

France warns Britain of Brexit consequences

The IMF has warned Brexit could deal the British economy a &quot;negative and substantial&quot; blow as Vladimir Putin suggested David Cameron was trying to &quot;blackmail&quot; Europe with the EU referendum. 
 
Meanwhile The Times newspaper came out&nbsp;Saturday&nbsp;in favour of Britain staying in the European Union, five days ahead of the vote on whether the UK should stay in the bloc or leave. 
 
The pound rallied as investors leaned towards a Remain outcome from&nbsp;Thursday&#39;s&nbsp;closely-contested referendum. 
 
IMF warns of contagion&nbsp; 
 
With less than a week until the referendum, the International Monetary Fund warned that a so-called Brexit would harm the British economy while &quot;contagion effects&quot; could hit markets worldwide. 
 
In the worst-case scenario, the UK economy would sink into recession next year and overall economic output would be 5.6 per cent lower than otherwise forecast by 2019, with unemployment rising back above six per cent, it said today. 
 
&quot;While there is much uncertainty about the precise economic effects of an exit from the EU, they are likely negative and substantial,&quot; the Washington-based global crisis lender revealed in its annual British economic check-up. 
 
&quot;An exit would precipitate a protracted period of heightened uncertainty that could weigh on confidence and investment and increase financial market volatility.&quot; 
 
In addition, &quot;contagion effects could result in spillovers to regional and global markets, although the primary impact would be felt domestically&quot;. 
 
While in a &quot;limited impact&quot; scenario the IMF said the economy would only lose 1.4 per cent from the current outlook by 2019, the report gave one of the starkest pictures yet of the impact of Brexit. 
 
Putin wades in&nbsp; 
 
Meanwhile Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested British Prime Minister David Cameron had called the referendum to &quot;blackmail&quot; and &quot;scare&quot; Europe. 
 
&quot;Why has he set up this referendum? To blackmail Europe? Or to scare it? What is the purpose if he himself is against Britain leaving the EU,&quot; Putin said today during a meeting with representatives of news agencies. 
 
&quot;Some experts say a Brexit will be to the detriment of Europe. But others say that the EU will be more stable,&quot; Putin said, pointing to the example of British fishermen. 
 
&quot;They explain how hard it is to live with the restrictions on fishing. But there are advantages in other sectors.&nbsp;If you consider all these things, it&#39;s very complicated to choose,&quot; he added. 
 
The What UK Thinks average of the last six opinion polls puts the Remain camp on 52 per cent to 48 per cent for the Leave campaign, excluding undecided voters. 
 
Times&#39; &#39;pragmatic&#39; Remain case 
&nbsp; 
The Times swung behind the Remain camp&nbsp;on Saturday, in opposition to its stablemate The Sun, Britain&#39;s biggest-selling newspaper, which is backing a Leave vote. 
 
&quot;The best outcome of next week&#39;s referendum would be a new alliance of sovereign EU nations dedicated to free trade and reform, led by Britain,&quot; it said in a 2,000-word editorial. 
 
The Times said voting to stay was a &quot;pragmatic rather than enthusiastic choice&quot;. 
 
&quot;Brexit is unquestionably economically riskier than a vote to remain,&quot; the daily said. 
 
&quot;On balance we believe Britain would be better off leading a renewed drive for reform within the EU rather than starting afresh outside it.&quot; 
 
The pound rallied&nbsp;Friday&nbsp;as investors swung their bets towards Britain voting to stay in the EU, in part due to the three-day suspension of campaigning over Cox&#39;s murder. 
 
&quot;The shocking news was seen, at least on the margin, as hurting public sentiment toward the Brexit move,&quot; said Omer Esiner of Commonwealth Foreign Exchange. 
 
Long-running fears of a pro-Brexit vote had been hammering the pound, and they were heightened in recent weeks as the &quot;Leave&quot; campaign pulled ahead in the polls. 
 
The pound surged about one per cent against the dollar to $1.4348. It was up 0.5 per cent against the euro at 78.62 pence. 
 
Meanwhile French National Front leader Marine Le Pen, enthused by the British referendum, addressed a 2,000-strong Vienna rally of far-right European &quot;patriots&quot;. 
 
The elites of Europe &quot;are scared that the United Kingdom is regaining its liberty, its freedom to trade with whom it pleases,&quot; she said. 
(AFP)

'While there is much uncertainty about the precise economic effects of an exit from the EU, they are likely negative and substantial'

The IMF has warned Brexit could deal the British economy a "negative and substantial" blow as Vladimir Putin suggested David Cameron was trying to "blackmail" Europe with the EU referendum. Meanwhile The Times newspaper came out Saturday in favour of Britain staying in the European Union, five days ahead of the vote on whether the UK should stay in the bloc or leave. The pound rallied as investors leaned towards a Remain outcome from Thursday's closely-contested referendum. IMF warns of contagion With less than a week until the referendum, the International Monetary Fund warned that a so-called Brexit would harm the British economy while "contagion effects" could hit markets worldwide. In the worst-case scenario, the UK economy would sink into recession next year and overall economic output would be 5.6 per cent lower than otherwise forecast by 2019, with unemployment rising back above six per cent, it said today. "While there is much uncertainty about the precise economic effects of an exit from the EU, they are likely negative and substantial," the Washington-based global crisis lender revealed in its annual British economic check-up. "An exit would precipitate a protracted period of heightened uncertainty that could weigh on confidence and investment and increase financial market volatility." In addition, "contagion effects could result in spillovers to regional and global markets, although the primary impact would be felt domestically". While in a "limited impact" scenario the IMF said the economy would only lose 1.4 per cent from the current outlook by 2019, the report gave one of the starkest pictures yet of the impact of Brexit. Putin wades in Meanwhile Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested British Prime Minister David Cameron had called the referendum to "blackmail" and "scare" Europe. "Why has he set up this referendum? To blackmail Europe? Or to scare it? What is the purpose if he himself is against Britain leaving the EU," Putin said today during a meeting with representatives of news agencies. "Some experts say a Brexit will be to the detriment of Europe. But others say that the EU will be more stable," Putin said, pointing to the example of British fishermen. "They explain how hard it is to live with the restrictions on fishing. But there are advantages in other sectors. If you consider all these things, it's very complicated to choose," he added. The What UK Thinks average of the last six opinion polls puts the Remain camp on 52 per cent to 48 per cent for the Leave campaign, excluding undecided voters. Times' 'pragmatic' Remain case The Times swung behind the Remain camp on Saturday, in opposition to its stablemate The Sun, Britain's biggest-selling newspaper, which is backing a Leave vote. "The best outcome of next week's referendum would be a new alliance of sovereign EU nations dedicated to free trade and reform, led by Britain," it said in a 2,000-word editorial. The Times said voting to stay was a "pragmatic rather than enthusiastic choice". "Brexit is unquestionably economically riskier than a vote to remain," the daily said. "On balance we believe Britain would be better off leading a renewed drive for reform within the EU rather than starting afresh outside it." The pound rallied Friday as investors swung their bets towards Britain voting to stay in the EU, in part due to the three-day suspension of campaigning over Cox's murder. "The shocking news was seen, at least on the margin, as hurting public sentiment toward the Brexit move," said Omer Esiner of Commonwealth Foreign Exchange. Long-running fears of a pro-Brexit vote had been hammering the pound, and they were heightened in recent weeks as the "Leave" campaign pulled ahead in the polls. The pound surged about one per cent against the dollar to $1.4348. It was up 0.5 per cent against the euro at 78.62 pence. Meanwhile French National Front leader Marine Le Pen, enthused by the British referendum, addressed a 2,000-strong Vienna rally of far-right European "patriots". The elites of Europe "are scared that the United Kingdom is regaining its liberty, its freedom to trade with whom it pleases," she said. (AFP)

Brexit could harm British economy and hit markets worldwide, IMF warns

Crude oil prices rose today for the first time in seven days as markets took a breather from concerns about the impact of Britain&#39;s possible exit from the European Union. 
 
Brent crude futures were up 59 cents, or 1.3 per cent, at $47.78 a barrel around 0650 GMT after slumping 3.6 per cent in the previous session. The contract is on track to fall nearly 5.5 per cent next week. 
 
US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 37 cents, or 0.8 per cent, to $46.58. The contract fell 3.8 per cent in the previous session and prices are down around 5 per cent so far this week. 
 
The British pound rose from a two-month low after campaigning for next week&#39;s so-called Brexit vote next week was suspended following the murder on Thursday of UK member of parliament Jo Cox, who was a vocal advocate for Britain to stay in the European Union. 
 
Commodities across the board also posted gains, while equity benchmarks including Japan&#39;s Nikkei stock average rose. 
 
&quot;We need to brace ourselves for further volatility,&quot; said Ben Le Brun, market analyst at OptionsXpress in Sydney. 
 
&quot;We are seeing a bit of a recovery now with maybe some short positions being unwound. It is certainly going to be a wild ride for investors and traders going into the June 23 decision,&quot; he said. 
 
Still, global oil majors Chevron Corp and Royal Dutch Shell Plc are putting small refineries on the auction block as they look to trim lower-margin assets in the face of headwinds from rising crude oil prices. 
 
Chevron, the second largest US oil company, is soliciting interest in its Burnaby, British Columbia, refinery and gasoline stations, the company told Reuters. 
 
Shell is looking for buyers for its Martinez, California, refinery, two people familiar with the situation told Reuters. Shell declined to comment. 
(Reuters)

Market takes breather from concerns about the impact of Britain's possible exit from the EU

Crude oil prices rose today for the first time in seven days as markets took a breather from concerns about the impact of Britain's possible exit from the European Union. Brent crude futures were up 59 cents, or 1.3 per cent, at $47.78 a barrel around 0650 GMT after slumping 3.6 per cent in the previous session. The contract is on track to fall nearly 5.5 per cent next week. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 37 cents, or 0.8 per cent, to $46.58. The contract fell 3.8 per cent in the previous session and prices are down around 5 per cent so far this week. The British pound rose from a two-month low after campaigning for next week's so-called Brexit vote next week was suspended following the murder on Thursday of UK member of parliament Jo Cox, who was a vocal advocate for Britain to stay in the European Union. Commodities across the board also posted gains, while equity benchmarks including Japan's Nikkei stock average rose. "We need to brace ourselves for further volatility," said Ben Le Brun, market analyst at OptionsXpress in Sydney. "We are seeing a bit of a recovery now with maybe some short positions being unwound. It is certainly going to be a wild ride for investors and traders going into the June 23 decision," he said. Still, global oil majors Chevron Corp and Royal Dutch Shell Plc are putting small refineries on the auction block as they look to trim lower-margin assets in the face of headwinds from rising crude oil prices. Chevron, the second largest US oil company, is soliciting interest in its Burnaby, British Columbia, refinery and gasoline stations, the company told Reuters. Shell is looking for buyers for its Martinez, California, refinery, two people familiar with the situation told Reuters. Shell declined to comment. (Reuters)

Crude oil price rises for first time in 7 days

Former European Commission President Jacques Delors, the father of modern European integration, said in a statement on Thursday that British membership is positive both for the United Kingdom and for the European Union. 
 
Delors, 89, who clashed frequently with former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher during his decade at the head of the EU executive from 1985 to 1994, said he would respect the British voters&#39; decision in next week&#39;s referendum on whether to remain in the EU. 
 
&quot;I consider the UK&#39;s participation in the European Union to be a positive element both for the British and for the Union,&quot; Delors said. 
 
His statement was emailed to dispel what &nbsp;the Jacques&nbsp;Delors&nbsp;Institute&nbsp;called inaccurate rumours that he favoured a Brexit to enable the remaining EU members to move ahead with deeper integration. 
(Reuters)

The statement was issued to dispel rumours that he supported Brexit to allow other members to continue with better integration

Former European Commission President Jacques Delors, the father of modern European integration, said in a statement on Thursday that British membership is positive both for the United Kingdom and for the European Union. Delors, 89, who clashed frequently with former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher during his decade at the head of the EU executive from 1985 to 1994, said he would respect the British voters' decision in next week's referendum on whether to remain in the EU. "I consider the UK's participation in the European Union to be a positive element both for the British and for the Union," Delors said. His statement was emailed to dispel what the Jacques Delors Institute called inaccurate rumours that he favoured a Brexit to enable the remaining EU members to move ahead with deeper integration. (Reuters)

British membership positive for EU, says former chief Delors

The anti-Brexit front swells its ranks with Germany Foreign Affairs Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and its French counterpart, Jean-Marc Ayrault, openly warning against UK leaving the European Union (EU). 
 
&quot;We can both say that we want the majority in Britain to make the right decision, and the right decision from our point of view can only be to remain in Europe,&quot; said Steinmeier during a joint press conference in Brandenburg, close to Berlin. 
 
Addressing eruosceptics&#39; worries, French Foreign Affair Minister promised that the union would keep evolving in time. &quot;Europe can&#39;t be static, it must keep moving,&quot; he said. &quot;Today it faces contradictions, slow-downs, difficulties, anxieties and fears, but we want to give Europe a new dynamism.&rdquo; 
 
Berlin&#39;s representative went as far as saying that the 23 June referendum could eventually lead to the &quot;disintegration&quot; of the EU. &quot;It would be a shock that would require mutual assurances that the European Union continues to stick together,&quot; he said. 
 
Euroscepticism has played a significant role in the history of&nbsp;UK politics. Since the end&nbsp;of the Second World War,&nbsp;the English attitude towards a united Europe&nbsp;has always been ambiguous.&nbsp;A position well summarized by then-Prime Minister&nbsp;Winston Churchill, when he&nbsp;declared in a speech in Zuirch&nbsp;that a&nbsp;&quot;kind of United States of Europe&quot; was a necessity, but without involving Britain. 
 
Franco-German statements come directly from two of the founding members of the European Union, as well as&nbsp;two of its&nbsp;leading economies. It is an influential endorsement for anti-Brexit supporters, among which British Prime Minister David Cameron, after a series of polls showed the Brexit front in the lead. 
 
A vote that would leave Britain as an outsider to the EU is &quot;a reality which we don&#39;t want&quot;, said German Foreign Affairs Minister. &quot;Europe would be lacking a lot if Great Britain decided to leave.&quot; 
(AFP)

In a joint press conference, they agreed Brexit could lead to the disintegration of the European Union

The anti-Brexit front swells its ranks with Germany Foreign Affairs Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and its French counterpart, Jean-Marc Ayrault, openly warning against UK leaving the European Union (EU). "We can both say that we want the majority in Britain to make the right decision, and the right decision from our point of view can only be to remain in Europe," said Steinmeier during a joint press conference in Brandenburg, close to Berlin. Addressing eruosceptics' worries, French Foreign Affair Minister promised that the union would keep evolving in time. "Europe can't be static, it must keep moving," he said. "Today it faces contradictions, slow-downs, difficulties, anxieties and fears, but we want to give Europe a new dynamism.” Berlin's representative went as far as saying that the 23 June referendum could eventually lead to the "disintegration" of the EU. "It would be a shock that would require mutual assurances that the European Union continues to stick together," he said. Euroscepticism has played a significant role in the history of UK politics. Since the end of the Second World War, the English attitude towards a united Europe has always been ambiguous. A position well summarized by then-Prime Minister Winston Churchill, when he declared in a speech in Zuirch that a "kind of United States of Europe" was a necessity, but without involving Britain. Franco-German statements come directly from two of the founding members of the European Union, as well as two of its leading economies. It is an influential endorsement for anti-Brexit supporters, among which British Prime Minister David Cameron, after a series of polls showed the Brexit front in the lead. A vote that would leave Britain as an outsider to the EU is "a reality which we don't want", said German Foreign Affairs Minister. "Europe would be lacking a lot if Great Britain decided to leave." (AFP)

French and German foreign affairs ministers warn against Brexit

Indian shares ended lower on Thursday, as negative sentiment persisted across the globe after the Bank of Japan and the US&nbsp;Federal Reserve acknowledged concerns over Britain&#39;s likely exit from the European Union while keeping key policy rates steady.

The Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex fell 0.75 per cent to 26,525.46.

The broader National Stock Exchange Nifty was down 0.8 per cent at 8,140.75, after falling as much as 1.6 per cent earlier in the day. 
(Reuters)

The Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex fell 0.75 per cent to 26,525.46 while the National stock Exchange was down 0.8 per cent at 8,140.75

Indian shares ended lower on Thursday, as negative sentiment persisted across the globe after the Bank of Japan and the US Federal Reserve acknowledged concerns over Britain's likely exit from the European Union while keeping key policy rates steady. The Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex fell 0.75 per cent to 26,525.46. The broader National Stock Exchange Nifty was down 0.8 per cent at 8,140.75, after falling as much as 1.6 per cent earlier in the day. (Reuters)

Indian stock index ends lower as Brexit concerns persist

Gold turned lower on Thursday, as Sterling bounced higher and US stock markets came well off their lows following the suspension of Britain&#39;s campaign for next week&#39;s referendum after a member of Parliament was shot dead. 
 
British Member of Parliament Jo Cox, who was killed in the street in her constituency in northern England earlier in the day, had been a vocal supporter of Britain remaining within the EU. 
 
The turnaround in bullion prices, their first drop in seven sessions, came after rallying to the highest in nearly two years, buoyed by the US Federal Reserve, which sounded a dovish note after its latest policy meeting on Wednesday. 
 
In Euro and Sterling terms, the metal turned lower after reaching three-year highs. 
 
Spot gold was down 0.4 per cent at $1,285.76 an ounce by 2:40 pm EDT (1840 GMT), after rising to $1,315.55 an ounce, the highest since August 2014. 
 
Spot prices have bounced 6 per cent this month, after the approaching June 23 referendum - when Britons will vote on whether or not to leave the European Union, dubbed &quot;Brexit&quot; - dented appetite for assets viewed as higher risk, sending investors scurrying for bonds and gold. 
 
After the attack, campaigning for next week&#39;s referendum was suspended. 
 
U.S. gold futures for August delivery settled up 0.8 percent at $1,298.40 an ounce. 
 
&quot;A rebound in the euro and sterling, and a mirrored decline in the dollar, set gold up for a retracement,&quot; said James Steel, chief metals analyst for HSBC Securities in New York. 
 
&quot;Recovery in equities may also imply some dimming in risk-off related purchases of gold.&quot; 
 
Yields on most U.S. Treasury yields rose to session highs after British campaigning for the Brexit vote was suspended following MP Cox&#39;s death. 
 
Expectations that the U.S. central bank would press ahead with interest rate increases over the summer faded earlier this month after the release of weak U.S. payrolls data for May. 
 
&quot;Brexit worries then gave us the next boost and yesterday the FOMC provided enough dovish ammunition for it to make a new high,&quot; said Saxo Bank&#39;s head of commodity research, Ole Hansen. 
 
On Wednesday, holdings in the world&#39;s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Shares, rose to the highest since October 2013. 
 
Silver fell 0.4 percent to $17.43 an ounce, platinum lost 0.1 percent to $969.67 and palladium was up 0.2 percent at $533.11. 
(Reuters)

US stock markets came well off their lows following the suspension of Britain's referendum campaign after the death of British MP

Gold turned lower on Thursday, as Sterling bounced higher and US stock markets came well off their lows following the suspension of Britain's campaign for next week's referendum after a member of Parliament was shot dead. British Member of Parliament Jo Cox, who was killed in the street in her constituency in northern England earlier in the day, had been a vocal supporter of Britain remaining within the EU. The turnaround in bullion prices, their first drop in seven sessions, came after rallying to the highest in nearly two years, buoyed by the US Federal Reserve, which sounded a dovish note after its latest policy meeting on Wednesday. In Euro and Sterling terms, the metal turned lower after reaching three-year highs. Spot gold was down 0.4 per cent at $1,285.76 an ounce by 2:40 pm EDT (1840 GMT), after rising to $1,315.55 an ounce, the highest since August 2014. Spot prices have bounced 6 per cent this month, after the approaching June 23 referendum - when Britons will vote on whether or not to leave the European Union, dubbed "Brexit" - dented appetite for assets viewed as higher risk, sending investors scurrying for bonds and gold. After the attack, campaigning for next week's referendum was suspended. U.S. gold futures for August delivery settled up 0.8 percent at $1,298.40 an ounce. "A rebound in the euro and sterling, and a mirrored decline in the dollar, set gold up for a retracement," said James Steel, chief metals analyst for HSBC Securities in New York. "Recovery in equities may also imply some dimming in risk-off related purchases of gold." Yields on most U.S. Treasury yields rose to session highs after British campaigning for the Brexit vote was suspended following MP Cox's death. Expectations that the U.S. central bank would press ahead with interest rate increases over the summer faded earlier this month after the release of weak U.S. payrolls data for May. "Brexit worries then gave us the next boost and yesterday the FOMC provided enough dovish ammunition for it to make a new high," said Saxo Bank's head of commodity research, Ole Hansen. On Wednesday, holdings in the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Shares, rose to the highest since October 2013. Silver fell 0.4 percent to $17.43 an ounce, platinum lost 0.1 percent to $969.67 and palladium was up 0.2 percent at $533.11. (Reuters)

Gold falls from two-year high as Brexit campaign suspended

Sterling advanced on Thursday as the campaign for Britain&#39;s vote on whether to leave the European Union was suspended following the murder of a British lawmaker, while US stocks cut losses. 
 
British Member of Parliament Jo Cox, who was shot dead in the street in her constituency in northern England earlier in the day, had been a vocal supporter of Britain remaining within the European Union. 
 
Whether Britain will leave the European Union, dubbed &quot;Brexit,&quot; is an issue that will be decided in a referendum next week and could undermine decades of European integration and stoke global economic uncertainty. 
 
&quot;Certainly, people are talking about the possibility that this does influence the Brexit vote in favour of remain. It is a tragic event all around. There is a sense, there is an immediate emotional reaction, but there is still a week before the referendum itself&quot; on June 23, said Alan Ruskin, global co-head of FX research at Deutsche Bank in New York. 
 
The British Pound hit a US trading high after the news, and was last up slightly at $1.4207. 
 
Rival referendum campaign groups in Britain said they were suspending activities for the day and Prime Minister David Cameron said he would pull out of a planned rally in Gibraltar, the British territory on the southern coast of Spain. 
 
US stocks, which had tumbled earlier on global growth worries, cut losses and the Dow briefly traded higher. 
 
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 17.67 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 17,657.84, the S&amp;P 500 lost 2.41 points, or 0.12 per cent, to 2,069.09 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 10.81 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 4,824.12. 
 
The European FTSEurofirst 300 index closed down 0.5 per cent. 
 
Oil prices slumped about three per cent and were down a sixth straight day as the Dollar&#39;s rally on fears of Britain&#39;s exit from the EU hammered commodities priced in the currency. 
 
Data showing US crude stockpiles fell less than expected also weighed on oil prices. Brent crude futures were down $1.52 at $47.45, while US crude futures were down $1.61 at $46.40. 
 
Yields on most US Treasury yields rose to session highs after British campaigning for the Brexit vote was suspended following MP Cox&#39;s death. 
 
Yields on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes rose to a session high of 1.581 per cent, after earlier falling to 1.518 per cent, the lowest level since August 2012.

S&P and Nasdaq dropped, but Dow Jones gained as Brexit campaign was called off after the death of British lawmaker Jo Cox

Sterling advanced on Thursday as the campaign for Britain's vote on whether to leave the European Union was suspended following the murder of a British lawmaker, while US stocks cut losses. British Member of Parliament Jo Cox, who was shot dead in the street in her constituency in northern England earlier in the day, had been a vocal supporter of Britain remaining within the European Union. Whether Britain will leave the European Union, dubbed "Brexit," is an issue that will be decided in a referendum next week and could undermine decades of European integration and stoke global economic uncertainty. "Certainly, people are talking about the possibility that this does influence the Brexit vote in favour of remain. It is a tragic event all around. There is a sense, there is an immediate emotional reaction, but there is still a week before the referendum itself" on June 23, said Alan Ruskin, global co-head of FX research at Deutsche Bank in New York. The British Pound hit a US trading high after the news, and was last up slightly at $1.4207. Rival referendum campaign groups in Britain said they were suspending activities for the day and Prime Minister David Cameron said he would pull out of a planned rally in Gibraltar, the British territory on the southern coast of Spain. US stocks, which had tumbled earlier on global growth worries, cut losses and the Dow briefly traded higher. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 17.67 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 17,657.84, the S&P 500 lost 2.41 points, or 0.12 per cent, to 2,069.09 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 10.81 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 4,824.12. The European FTSEurofirst 300 index closed down 0.5 per cent. Oil prices slumped about three per cent and were down a sixth straight day as the Dollar's rally on fears of Britain's exit from the EU hammered commodities priced in the currency. Data showing US crude stockpiles fell less than expected also weighed on oil prices. Brent crude futures were down $1.52 at $47.45, while US crude futures were down $1.61 at $46.40. Yields on most US Treasury yields rose to session highs after British campaigning for the Brexit vote was suspended following MP Cox's death. Yields on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes rose to a session high of 1.581 per cent, after earlier falling to 1.518 per cent, the lowest level since August 2012.

Sterling gains as Brexit campaign suspended

Crude futures fell on Wednesday as mounting concerns about Britain&#39;s possible exit from the European Union and a surprise build in&nbsp;the&nbsp;US&nbsp;inventories left investors ignoring an International Energy Agency declaration that oil markets are now in balance. 
 
US&nbsp;crude fell to a three-week low of $47.55 as the contract dropped for a fifth day. It was trading down 52 cents at $47.97 a barrel 
 
Brent was also down for a fifth day to hit its lowest in around two weeks. The global benchmark was 52 cents lower at $49.29 a barrel. 
 
Data from the American Petroleum Institute showed US&nbsp;crude inventories rose by 1.2 million barrels in the week to June 10 to 536.7 million, compared with analyst expectations for a decrease of 2.3 million barrels. 
 
But the impending vote on the so-called Brexit is dominating everything from currency markets to German Bunds, yields of which fell below zero for the first time on Tuesday after polls showed the &quot;Out&quot; campaign gaining over &quot;In&quot;. 
 
&quot;The broad picture at the moment is that oil is being swept up in a broad risk off move associated with Brexit primarily,&quot; said Ric Spooner, chief market analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney. 
 
The influential Sun newspaper, long a scourge of alleged European Union excess, also came out in support of Britain leaving the European Union. 
 
If Britain votes to exit the EU, investors fear the bloc could slip into a recession that would undermine oil demand. 
 
The oil market is now in balance due to unplanned outages and robust demand, particularly from emerging economies, but this equilibrium will tip into surplus again early in 2017, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Tuesday. 
 
But there is plenty of oil flowing into the market with Iran&#39;s exports on track to hit the highest in almost 4.5&nbsp;years in June, as shipments to Europe recover to near pre-sanctions level, a source with knowledge of the country&#39;s crude lifting plans has told Reuters.

US crude drops by 52 cents at $47.55 due to scaling agitation regarding the possibilities of Britain's exit from EU

Crude futures fell on Wednesday as mounting concerns about Britain's possible exit from the European Union and a surprise build in the US inventories left investors ignoring an International Energy Agency declaration that oil markets are now in balance. US crude fell to a three-week low of $47.55 as the contract dropped for a fifth day. It was trading down 52 cents at $47.97 a barrel Brent was also down for a fifth day to hit its lowest in around two weeks. The global benchmark was 52 cents lower at $49.29 a barrel. Data from the American Petroleum Institute showed US crude inventories rose by 1.2 million barrels in the week to June 10 to 536.7 million, compared with analyst expectations for a decrease of 2.3 million barrels. But the impending vote on the so-called Brexit is dominating everything from currency markets to German Bunds, yields of which fell below zero for the first time on Tuesday after polls showed the "Out" campaign gaining over "In". "The broad picture at the moment is that oil is being swept up in a broad risk off move associated with Brexit primarily," said Ric Spooner, chief market analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney. The influential Sun newspaper, long a scourge of alleged European Union excess, also came out in support of Britain leaving the European Union. If Britain votes to exit the EU, investors fear the bloc could slip into a recession that would undermine oil demand. The oil market is now in balance due to unplanned outages and robust demand, particularly from emerging economies, but this equilibrium will tip into surplus again early in 2017, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Tuesday. But there is plenty of oil flowing into the market with Iran's exports on track to hit the highest in almost 4.5 years in June, as shipments to Europe recover to near pre-sanctions level, a source with knowledge of the country's crude lifting plans has told Reuters.

US oil falls to three-week low on inventory gains due to Brexit fears

The Federal Reserve is expected to keep interest rates unchanged and signal if it still plans to double the rates in 2016 amid concerns about a US hiring slowdown and Britain&#39;s possible exit from the European Union. 
 
The Fed had raised its key overnight lending rate in December for the first time in nearly a decade, but it has backed away from further monetary policy tightening this year largely due to a global economic slowdown and financial market volatility. 
 
The US central bank is scheduled to issue its latest policy statement and updated economic projections following a two-day meeting at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT). Fed Chair Janet Yellen will hold a news conference today.&nbsp; 
 
The Fed&#39;s targeted overnight lending rate is forecast to remain in the current range of 0.25 per cent to 0.50 per cent, according to a Reuters poll of 151 economists. 
 
Fed forecasts in March pointed to two rate rises in 2016, but a sharp slowdown in US job gains in May and the prospect that Britain could vote next week to leave the EU have added to doubts about the economic outlook. 
 
With US hiring expected to bounce back in June and no financial meltdown from the Brexit vote currently seen, economists now expect the Fed to tighten monetary policy in July or September. 
 
Yellen, however, recently warned that a British exit from the EU could have a significant economic impact, a concern shared by other Fed policymakers. 
 
&quot;We shouldn&#39;t expect the Fed to be prepared to send a clear signal about a timing of rate hikes,&quot; said Roberto Perli, an economist at Cornerstone Macro. 
 
The Fed telegraphed December&#39;s rate increase by saying in October it would consider tightening at its next meeting. While such clarity appears unlikely today, policymakers could provide guidance through their updated economic forecasts. 
 
Perli and other analysts expect those forecasts will continue to point to two rate increases this year. They calculate eight of the Fed&#39;s 17 policymakers would need to shift their outlook for the closely-watched median forecast to move to only one increase. 
 
Prices for interest rate futures suggest investors are betting on just one rate rise this year, according to CME Group. 
 
Economists expect the Fed will raise rates at least once this year, based on a view of an improving US jobs market and the central bank coming under pressure to keep inflation from rising well above its 2 per cent target. 
 
&quot;With the unemployment rate at 4.7 per cent, wage growth clearly picking up, and financial conditions much easier, there is likely a limit to how long the Fed&#39;s pause can last,&quot; Goldman Sachs economists Jan Hatzius and Zach Pandl wrote in a recent note to clients. 
(Reuters)

The US Federal Reserve had raised its lending rate last December for the first time since 2006 by a quarter-percentage point

The Federal Reserve is expected to keep interest rates unchanged and signal if it still plans to double the rates in 2016 amid concerns about a US hiring slowdown and Britain's possible exit from the European Union. The Fed had raised its key overnight lending rate in December for the first time in nearly a decade, but it has backed away from further monetary policy tightening this year largely due to a global economic slowdown and financial market volatility. The US central bank is scheduled to issue its latest policy statement and updated economic projections following a two-day meeting at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT). Fed Chair Janet Yellen will hold a news conference today. The Fed's targeted overnight lending rate is forecast to remain in the current range of 0.25 per cent to 0.50 per cent, according to a Reuters poll of 151 economists. Fed forecasts in March pointed to two rate rises in 2016, but a sharp slowdown in US job gains in May and the prospect that Britain could vote next week to leave the EU have added to doubts about the economic outlook. With US hiring expected to bounce back in June and no financial meltdown from the Brexit vote currently seen, economists now expect the Fed to tighten monetary policy in July or September. Yellen, however, recently warned that a British exit from the EU could have a significant economic impact, a concern shared by other Fed policymakers. "We shouldn't expect the Fed to be prepared to send a clear signal about a timing of rate hikes," said Roberto Perli, an economist at Cornerstone Macro. The Fed telegraphed December's rate increase by saying in October it would consider tightening at its next meeting. While such clarity appears unlikely today, policymakers could provide guidance through their updated economic forecasts. Perli and other analysts expect those forecasts will continue to point to two rate increases this year. They calculate eight of the Fed's 17 policymakers would need to shift their outlook for the closely-watched median forecast to move to only one increase. Prices for interest rate futures suggest investors are betting on just one rate rise this year, according to CME Group. Economists expect the Fed will raise rates at least once this year, based on a view of an improving US jobs market and the central bank coming under pressure to keep inflation from rising well above its 2 per cent target. "With the unemployment rate at 4.7 per cent, wage growth clearly picking up, and financial conditions much easier, there is likely a limit to how long the Fed's pause can last," Goldman Sachs economists Jan Hatzius and Zach Pandl wrote in a recent note to clients. (Reuters)

Fed expected to keep interest rates unchanged in wake of possible Brexit

<div style="text-align: justify;">European shares fell for a fifth straight session today, with investors becoming jittery before next week&#39;s referendum in Britain on its membership of the European Union and a two-day meeting of the Federal Reserve starting later in the day. 
 
Swiss money manager GAM Holding fell nearly 18 per cent to a 4.5&nbsp;year low after warning it expects a roughly 50 per cent year-on-year fall in first-half, underlying profit before tax, mainly due to lower performance fees. 
 
However,&nbsp;Premier Farnell surged 50 per cent&nbsp;after Daetwyler Holding agreed to buy it in an all-cash offer that valued the British electronic component distributor at just over 1 billion Swiss francs ($1.04 billion). 
 
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index fell 1.1 per cent to 1,270.68 points after hitting its lowest since February. The STOXX Europe 600 was also down 1.1 per cent, while the European miners fell 1.8 per cent, the top sectoral decliner, tracking weaker metals prices. 
 
The Euro STOXX 50 volatility index, Europe&#39;s main gauge of equity market investor anxiety known as the VSTOXX index, surged to a four-month high of 36, against 20 about two weeks ago, over&nbsp;Brexit&nbsp;fears. 
 
&quot;Brexit&nbsp;concerns are pushing the volatility index higher and particularly hitting financials. This increased volatility is likely to last at least until&nbsp;the referendum,&quot; said&nbsp;Koen De Leus, senior economist at KBC in Brussels 
 
Two opinion polls published by ICM showed on Monday that Britain&#39;s &quot;Out&quot; campaign had widened its lead over the &quot;In&quot; camp ahead of the June 23 referendum on Britain&#39;s EU membership, adding to investors&#39; general nervousness. 
 
The European banking index was down 0.7 per cent, taking total losses to more than 26 per cent this year. It is the worst performing sector in Europe in 2016. 
 
Uncertainty over this week&#39;s two-day Fed meeting, starting later on Tuesday, also weighed on markets. The US&nbsp;central bank is widely&nbsp;expected to leave rates unchanged after the much weaker-than-expected May nonfarm payrolls report, analysts said. 
 
&quot;Markets will continue to price in a worst case scenario meaning further declines are likely in the days ahead except if there would be a substantial shift in public opinion or some kind of verbal intervention from politicians or central bankers to bring back calm into the markets,&quot;&nbsp;Markus Huber, trader at City of London Markets, said.</div>

Brexit concerns are hitting the European markets with Swiss money manager GAM Holding hitting a 4.5 yearlow at 18 per cent

European shares fell for a fifth straight session today, with investors becoming jittery before next week's referendum in Britain on its membership of the European Union and a two-day meeting of the Federal Reserve starting later in the day. Swiss money manager GAM Holding fell nearly 18 per cent to a 4.5 year low after warning it expects a roughly 50 per cent year-on-year fall in first-half, underlying profit before tax, mainly due to lower performance fees. However, Premier Farnell surged 50 per cent after Daetwyler Holding agreed to buy it in an all-cash offer that valued the British electronic component distributor at just over 1 billion Swiss francs ($1.04 billion). The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index fell 1.1 per cent to 1,270.68 points after hitting its lowest since February. The STOXX Europe 600 was also down 1.1 per cent, while the European miners fell 1.8 per cent, the top sectoral decliner, tracking weaker metals prices. The Euro STOXX 50 volatility index, Europe's main gauge of equity market investor anxiety known as the VSTOXX index, surged to a four-month high of 36, against 20 about two weeks ago, over Brexit fears. "Brexit concerns are pushing the volatility index higher and particularly hitting financials. This increased volatility is likely to last at least until the referendum," said Koen De Leus, senior economist at KBC in Brussels Two opinion polls published by ICM showed on Monday that Britain's "Out" campaign had widened its lead over the "In" camp ahead of the June 23 referendum on Britain's EU membership, adding to investors' general nervousness. The European banking index was down 0.7 per cent, taking total losses to more than 26 per cent this year. It is the worst performing sector in Europe in 2016. Uncertainty over this week's two-day Fed meeting, starting later on Tuesday, also weighed on markets. The US central bank is widely expected to leave rates unchanged after the much weaker-than-expected May nonfarm payrolls report, analysts said. "Markets will continue to price in a worst case scenario meaning further declines are likely in the days ahead except if there would be a substantial shift in public opinion or some kind of verbal intervention from politicians or central bankers to bring back calm into the markets," Markus Huber, trader at City of London Markets, said.

European shares set new three-month low, Swiss GAM drops 18%

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