At this very early stage, the full impact of Brexit on our personal finances remains unclear, but we can already observe the following points.
The Pound and Prices
If the pound continues to fall then importing goods from other countries will be more expensive. This will push prices up and lead to a rise in inflation: but it’s good news for exporters as their goods become cheaper to buy.
Petrol
An early example of prices going up will be seen on the petrol forecourts. Wholesale petrol prices are quoted in dollars, so as the pound falls against the dollar, petrol prices will rise. The Petrol Retailers Association are already talking of a rise of 2-3p per litre.
Savings and Investments
Without question, the biggest threat to the stock market and your savings and investments is a prolonged period of uncertainty – the one thing markets hate above everything else. Assuming everything is worked out relatively quickly then the stock market should return to a normal pattern of trading – and as George Osborne has said at several points over the last week or so, the fundamentals of the UK economy are relatively strong. We certainly cannot assume that Brexit would be bad for shares: in the long run the stock market will be affected by events around the world – China’s economy, growth in the Eurozone, the outlook for the US – as much as it will be affected by Brexit.
Clearly any rise in interest rates (see below) would be good news for savers.
Interest rates and Mortgages
Before the Referendum vote, Remain were saying that a vote to Leave would push up borrowing costs, leading to higher mortgage payments and increasing renting costs. But if Brexit were to lead to a period of low growth then interest rates could be cut in a bid to stimulate the economy. David Tinsley, UK economist at UBS, has said that he expects two interest rate cuts from the Bank of England over the next six months, taking rates from the current 0.5% to zero.
House Prices
There appears to be some consensus that Brexit could lead to a fall in house prices, especially in London and the South East. The Treasury has spoken of a fall of 10-18% over the next two years. Clearly not good news for existing homeowners, but anyone with children struggling to get a foot on the housing ladder may take a different view.
Tax
During the campaign, George Osborne gave dire warnings of tax rises in the event of a victory for Leave. This would be directly contrary to the Conservative’s election pledge and would be difficult to implement. On the face of it, you could have said that an extension of ‘austerity’ for a further two years beyond 2020 was much more likely, but the Chancellor and Theresa May appear to be uniting behind an approach which abandons the fiscal charter and effectively loosens austerity. A further cut in corporation tax, to encourage businesses to remain in the City, has already been announced by Mr Osborne.
The Leave campaign did give a pledge to remove the 5% VAT on domestic fuel required by EU law – but there were so many pledges flying about that it is perhaps best to not build this into your household budget just yet.
Pensions
David Cameron did claim that a vote to Leave would threaten the ‘triple lock’ on pensions, but this presumes a poorer economy and a lower national income. If economic performance did deteriorate after Brexit, then the Bank of England might opt for a return to Quantitative Easing (QE) and/or lower interest rates. More QE would push down bond yields and with them annuity rates – so anyone buying a pension annuity would get less income for their money.
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How will Brexit affect your finances?
How will Brexit affect your finances?
July 6th, 2016• Comments Off on How will Brexit affect your finances?• Posted By Greenwood
At this very early stage, the full impact of Brexit on our personal finances remains unclear, but we can already observe the following points.
The Pound and Prices
If the pound continues to fall then importing goods from other countries will be more expensive. This will push prices up and lead to a rise in inflation: but it’s good news for exporters as their goods become cheaper to buy.
Petrol
An early example of prices going up will be seen on the petrol forecourts. Wholesale petrol prices are quoted in dollars, so as the pound falls against the dollar, petrol prices will rise. The Petrol Retailers Association are already talking of a rise of 2-3p per litre.
Savings and Investments
Without question, the biggest threat to the stock market and your savings and investments is a prolonged period of uncertainty – the one thing markets hate above everything else. Assuming everything is worked out relatively quickly then the stock market should return to a normal pattern of trading – and as George Osborne has said at several points over the last week or so, the fundamentals of the UK economy are relatively strong. We certainly cannot assume that Brexit would be bad for shares: in the long run the stock market will be affected by events around the world – China’s economy, growth in the Eurozone, the outlook for the US – as much as it will be affected by Brexit.
Clearly any rise in interest rates (see below) would be good news for savers.
Interest rates and Mortgages
Before the Referendum vote, Remain were saying that a vote to Leave would push up borrowing costs, leading to higher mortgage payments and increasing renting costs. But if Brexit were to lead to a period of low growth then interest rates could be cut in a bid to stimulate the economy. David Tinsley, UK economist at UBS, has said that he expects two interest rate cuts from the Bank of England over the next six months, taking rates from the current 0.5% to zero.
House Prices
There appears to be some consensus that Brexit could lead to a fall in house prices, especially in London and the South East. The Treasury has spoken of a fall of 10-18% over the next two years. Clearly not good news for existing homeowners, but anyone with children struggling to get a foot on the housing ladder may take a different view.
Tax
During the campaign, George Osborne gave dire warnings of tax rises in the event of a victory for Leave. This would be directly contrary to the Conservative’s election pledge and would be difficult to implement. On the face of it, you could have said that an extension of ‘austerity’ for a further two years beyond 2020 was much more likely, but the Chancellor and Theresa May appear to be uniting behind an approach which abandons the fiscal charter and effectively loosens austerity. A further cut in corporation tax, to encourage businesses to remain in the City, has already been announced by Mr Osborne.
The Leave campaign did give a pledge to remove the 5% VAT on domestic fuel required by EU law – but there were so many pledges flying about that it is perhaps best to not build this into your household budget just yet.
Pensions
David Cameron did claim that a vote to Leave would threaten the ‘triple lock’ on pensions, but this presumes a poorer economy and a lower national income. If economic performance did deteriorate after Brexit, then the Bank of England might opt for a return to Quantitative Easing (QE) and/or lower interest rates. More QE would push down bond yields and with them annuity rates – so anyone buying a pension annuity would get less income for their money.