Boris Johnson Is Underpriced By the Financial Markets
Sterling could well get a lift if the former Mayor of London becomes prime minister. International investors want clarity before they return to the U.K.
A clean pair of heels.
Photographer: Leon Neal/Getty Images EuropeSterling is in the dumps as the interminable delay to resolving Brexit is clearly holding back the U.K. economy. Perhaps the contest to choose a new leader for the ruling Conservative party, which started in earnest on Monday, can provide a change in direction for the currency.
After all, the winner will take over as prime minister from the hapless Theresa May, whose groundhog day administration became mired in repeated failures to get a Brexit deal past Parliament. The fact that several of the candidates to replace her are seemingly happy to let Britain crash out of the European Union without an agreement (with bookies’ favorite Boris Johnson foremost among them) has spooked foreign exchange traders. But plenty of people would welcome some kind of clarity, even if it’s of the “hard Brexit” kind.