How Britons are feeling pinch from Brexit
Shares
LONDON: (APP) Holidays abroad are already more expensive and supermarket food prices will rise -- Britons are feeling the pinch from Brexit, analysts say.
Britain voted last week to quit the European Union, despite the government's warnings of a potential recession and hefty price hikes for consumers.
Since the shock vote outcome, perhaps the most dramatic fallout has been the collapse in the pound.
The value of sterling has tumbled since Friday by up to 12.6 percent against the dollar and by up to 10.2 percent against the European single currency.
For Britons planning travelling abroad for their summer holidays, their slumping currency means that the pound in their pocket has lost purchasing power.
"The fall in value of the pound will have an immediate impact on holidaymakers and their spending power overseas," the Association of British Travel Agents said.
Ahead of the vote outcome, Britons had flocked early last week to foreign currency dealerships to sell their pounds in case of a currency crash.
In chaotic trade on Monday, the unit tanked to $1.3121 -- its weakest level since September 1985 -- while it forged two-year lows versus the euro.
The plunging pound also means imported goods like fresh produce will cost more, pushing consumer price inflation higher, experts warn.
"The prices of fresh produce will definitely go up as much of this is sourced from the EU," said analysts at Kantar research consultancy.
"In the case of (British supermarket giant) Tesco, for example, almost 50 percent of butter and cheese consumed in the UK comes from milk sourced from EU markets."
