Indonesia Stock Market & Rupiah: Brexit Looms, Financial Markets in Shock
As voting results are being collected chances are growing that the United Kingdom will leave the European Union (the so-called "Brexit"). After results from 314 of a total of 382 UK voting districts have been collected, the leave camp leads by 3.8 percent. As a result the pound sterling is on track for its largest-ever one-day fall. Meanwhile, stock markets in Asia show deep losses, led by Japan's Nikkei 225 index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index (both tumbling more than three percent).
Indonesia's benchmark Jakarta Composite Index was down over one percent in mid-morning trading, while the Indonesian rupiah had depreciated by 1.35 percent to IDR 13,427 per US dollar by 10:25 am local Jakarta time.
Perhaps the biggest victim of the looming Brexit is the pound sterling. The currency is set to experience its largest drop in history falling to a three-decade low. On Friday morning the sterling had depreciated nearly 10 percent against the US dollar, exceeding the fall that occurred on Black Wednesday in 1992. Meanwhile, the Japanese yen (a safe haven) appreciated markedly on Friday, causing the steep losses on the Nikkei 225 index.
Read more (Update): Brexit is Real, Britain Leaves the European Union, Global Impact