UK votes to leave EU in historic referendum
The UK has voted to leave the European Union after 43 years in a historic referendum.
The pound fell to its lowest level against the dollar since 1985 as the markets reacted to the results.
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UK votes to leave EU in historic referendum
The value of the pound has fallen dramatically as it emerged that the UK had voted to leave the EU.
At one stage it hit $1.3305, a fall of more than 10%, and a low not seen since 1985.
Before the results started to come in, the pound had risen as high as $1.50, as traders bet on a Remain victory.
But following early strong Leave votes in north-east England, it tumbled to $1.43 and then took another dive after 03:00 BST as Leave maintained its lead.
The move in sterling is the biggest one-day fall ever seen and London’s main share index, the FTSE 100, is expected to open sharply lower, with indications of a fall of around 7%.
A weaker pound buys fewer dollars or other foreign currencies, which makes it more expensive to buy products from abroad. However, it should benefit exporters as it makes their goods cheaper.
Against the euro, the pound dropped 7% to around €1.2085.
The euro also fell 3.3% against the dollar, its biggest one-day fall since the currency’s inception.
Currency traders say these moves are more extreme than those seen during the financial crisis of 2008.
“Never seen anything like it. These are once-in-a-lifetime moves, bigger than Lehmans and Black Wednesday, and we haven’t even had the result yet,” said Joe Rundle, head of trading at ETX Capital.
