After months of uncertainty, the British Prime Minister’s announcement that the UK’s formal notification to the EU will be delivered on the 29th March starts to provide the markets with much needed certainty.
As a result the pound strengthened (marginally) against the Euro and the Dollar with an upward move from 1.1487 to 1.1532 (GBP/EUR) and from 1.218 to 1.246 (GBP/USD). The FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 remained fairly flat. It would appear that the financial, currency and property markets had sufficient time to adjust to the new macro economic conditions since after the Brexit vote of last June.
The UK property market remained strong throughout, driven by a shortage of supply for starter and affordable homes coupled with strong demand, whilst prime central London is starting to witness increased transaction volumes and small price increases.
The Chancellor’s Budget was uneventful save for witty jokes on the day and a U-turn on the National Insurance hike. As expected, calls for a revision of stamp duty rates (SDLT) have been largely ignored.
The fact there were no major announcements in the Budget is actually good news as it allows investors to plan and make investments with a higher degree of certainty. Eyes are now on inflation and the resultant impact on interest rates and of course on the details of Brexit negotiations.
