BREXIT EFFECT: Global Markets Shock and Awed

Britain has voted to leave the European Union which is a historic decision that will have a huge effects in the world. The value of the British pound sunk as financial markets absorbed the news.

Financial institution took a beating as the prospect of a sinking pound eating into the profits of British companies as well as broader worries about the financial sector have battered the shares of the British banks HSBC and Standard Chartered.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index are down by 5% pulled down by stocks in banks, which had fallen more than 6%.

But HSBC’s stock slipped almost 12%, and Standard Chartered’s plummeted more than 13%. Prudential also saw its shares sink more than 11%.

Shares in Indian and Chinese banks have dropped, too, and Japanese bank shares have experienced a rout as the yen has surged.

Morgan Stanley has already said it will consider moving its European headquarters to Dublin or Frankfurt in the event of a vote to leave. Markets are a factor in the cost of potentially streamlining operations in Britain and shifting operations to other parts of Europe.

The United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union, a decision that sent global markets into a tailspin early Friday.

The margin of victory was 52% to 48%.

It is the first departure from the alliance since the EU was formed 43 years ago. It could prompt other member nations to follow the U.K.'s lead and reverse a decades-long drive for European unity.

United States stocks rose sharply Amid Brexit Fears Ease

With the positive news that the polls are leaning towards Britain remaining in the European Union, the United States stocks sharply rose.

Asian stocks also traded higher and indexes in Europe were up as the latest opinion polls and betting markets suggested it was more likely that Britain would stay in the E.U. Britons vote in a referendum on the matter on Thursday.

The British pound rose sharply, and investors dumped ultrasafe assets like American government bonds, gold and utility stocks, sending those prices lower. Machinery and consumer companies jumped, and energy companies rose with the price of oil.

- Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index up by 12.03 points, 0.6% to 2,083.25.
- The Nasdaq composite up by 36.88 points 0.8% to 4,837.21.
- The Dow Jones industrial average up by 129.71 points, 0.7% to 17,804.87.
- Boeing gained $2.93, or 2.3% to $132.75
- Honeywell up by $1.14, or 1% to $117.06.
- General Electric up by 23 cents to $30.83.
- Amazon up by $7.62, or 1.1% to $714.01,
- Priceline up by $32.72, or 2.5% to $1,341.96
- Nike rose 65 cents, or 1.2% to $54.36.
- Benchmark United States crude oil rose $1.39, or 2.9% to $49.37 a barrel
- Brent crude gained $1.48, 3% to $50.65 a barrel in London.
- Chevron up by $1.04, 1% to $102.61.
- Marathon Oil up by $1.32, 10% to $14.48, company agreed to pay $888 million for PayRock Energy.

Bond prices dropped as investors moved money out of ultrasafe assets. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.68 percent from 1.61 percent late Friday.

The FTSE 100 in Britain leapt 3 percent and the CAC 40 in France rose 3.5 percent. The German DAX was up 3.4 percent. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index surged 2.3 percent. The South Korean Kospi climbed 1.4 percent and in Hong Kong the Hang Seng added 1.7 percent.

In other energy trading, wholesale gasoline added 8 cents, to $1.58 a gallon. Heating oil edged up 5 cents, to $1.53 a gallon. Natural gas rose 12 cents, to $2.75 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Gold slipped $2.50, to $1,290 an ounce. Silver rose 10 cents, to $17.51 an ounce. Copper added 4 cents, to $2.09 a pound.

The pound rose to $1.4684 from $1.4361. The dollar fell to 103.86 yen from 104.21 yen and the euro rose to $1.1305 from $1.1277.

U.S. Crude Reserves Fall, Oil Hits 2016 Highs

Oil has recorded near 10-Month high as U.S. crude stockpiles decline, U.S. oil inventories fell 3.23 million barrels last week. It was also affected by disruptions in producing countries like Canada and Nigeria.

Futures were stable in New York, it just recorded an earlier increase of 0.9%, after settling on Wednesday at the highest since July 15. Crude stockpiles dropped by 3.23 million barrels last week to the lowest in two months, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. A new wildfire prompted Canadian oil producers Cenovus Energy Inc. and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. to shut production.

Crude has surged more than 95% from a 12-year low in February amid unexpected disruptions and a steady slide in U.S. output, which is under pressure from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ policy of pumping without limits. Militant attacks have hobbled production in OPEC member Nigeria.

West Texas Intermediate for July delivery traded 12 cents lower at $51.11 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange as of 9:23 a.m. London time, having risen as much 44 cents to $51.67. Total volume traded was about 20 percent below the 100-day average. The contract rose 87 cents, or 1.7 percent, to close at $51.23 on Wednesday, the highest since July 15.

International Brent crude oil futures hit a high of $52.86 a barrel, and were up 23 cents at $52.74 a barrel at 0700 GMT. U.S. crude hit a fresh high of $51.67 and was up 33 cents higher at $51.56 a barrel.