British pound wobbles before crunch Brexit vote

Sterling was under increasing pressure yesterday evening as British Prime Minister Theresa May was facing the prospect of a humiliating parliamentary defeat for her hard-fought Brexit deal.
The pound drooped against the dollar and also lost ground against the euro with investors on tenterhooks before the vital vote.
“The degree of political uncertainty in the UK means that economic news has been almost totally usurped,” Rabobank analyst Jane Foley said.
European stock markets, meanwhile, enjoyed cautious gains after Asia swung higher as worries dimmed over a global economic slowdown and Wall Street posted modest gains in the late New York morning.
The London FTSE-100 stock index even outperformed its eurozone peers, as equity investors welcomed a weaker pound.
With a little over two months to go until Britain leaves the EU on March 29, lawmakers were almost certain to vote against Ms May’s deal ­ ­– which was agreed with Brussels in a fraught and long-running process after the June 2016 referendum to leave the bloc.

Market pundits do not expect a “significant” swing following the outcome ­ ­– but they do anticipate “fireworks” as the nature of Brexit becomes apparent in the...