The vote of the British people in favour of Brexit was bad news for the UK, and for Europe. The victory of the “leave” camp has opened a period of uncertainty and we now have to face up to this new challenge.
The immediate consequences were of a financial nature: in addition to the sharp fall in the British pound, stock prices experienced strong corrections, especially in the banking sector. But there was no widespread panic: financial markets did not freeze up; stock prices returned to their mid-June levels from as early as end-June, or mid-July in the case of bank stocks; and the British pound rapidly stabilised at about 10% below its pre-referendum level.