Equity markets have started to stabilise following last week’s EU referendum result, with the FTSE 100 index only slightly down in early trading by 0.5 per cent to 6330.9, to keep the index on par with the pre-vote levels.
The FTSE 250 index, which has struggled to make back the sharp falls following the vote, is also remaining steady with a small slip of 0.1 per cent to 15,981.87.
This is in spite of the latest figures from the YouGov/Cebr Consumer Confidence Index showing a sharp fall in confidence since the vote.
The index, which measures people’s economic sentiment on a daily basis, has fallen from the consistent 111.9 recorded in the first three weeks of June to 104.3 in the days following the referendum.
In the findings YouGov/Cebr noted the last time consumer confidence was at this level was May 2013. It added: “While it has not yet plumbed the depths of the financial crisis in 2008, when it fell to a score of 67.4, it is only a week after the referendum and we fully expect it to decline further as the consequences of Brexit kick-in.”
In spite of the economic uncertainty Asian and US markets held up well overnight with Japan’s Topix index slightly down by 0.1 per cent and the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong 1.4 per cent higher. Meanwhile in the US the Dow Jones index gained 1.6 per cent and the S&P 500 climbed 1.7 per cent higher.
