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Saturday 23 July 2016 3:52 pm

These are eight surprise winners and losers from the EU referendum

By: Francesca Washtell

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Today is the one-month anniversary of the EU referendum. 

After years of debating whether or not a referendum on EU membership would be held, on 23 June the UK's voting populace trudged to polling stations and decided 52 per cent to 48 per cent to leave the organisation. 

Here are eight of the (perhaps surprising) winners and losers of this first post-Brexit vote month. 

First, the winners

1. Fine wine

The fall in Sterling in the wake of the referendum led to a spike in fine wine sales to international buyers, mostly based in Asia and the US. 

Spirits and wine merchant BI generated a week's revenue in six hours, while sales to Asian buyers jumped eight times higher than the previous day when the result of the referendum was announced. 


(Source: Getty)

Currency volatility will likely only serve wine well in the short-run, as merchants will then face challenges buying new stocks in, but for now wine is also being touted as the best alternative investment going at the moment. Get your corkscrews ready, in that case. 

2. Newspapers

 

Although newspapers have spent a lot of the last month reporting doom and gloom, the majority of national newspapers experienced an uplift in circulation as readers scrabbled to find out what was actually going on. 

Figures released by ABC showed The Guardian had the highest circulation boost at 3.6 per cent, while The Times' grew 2.5 per cent and The Sun's 2.3 per cent. 

3. Theresa May

When David Cameron resigned on the morning of 24 June, it was anyone's guess as to who would be next to move into Number 10. 

After an at times bitter battle that pitted Boris Johnson, Michael Gove, Stephen Crabb and, in a final showdown, Andrea Leadsom and Theresa May against one another, pro-Remain May led a quiet but persistent campaign to success and was appointed as prime minister last week. 


(Source: Getty)

4. Frankfurt

Admittedly, Frankfurt has not yet emerged as a definitive winner from the Brexit vote. However, it definitely deserves some points for enthusiasm. 

As a City rival and one of Europe's other major business hubs, Frankfurt businesses believe the city has “once in a century chance” to capitalise on the Brexit vote, according to a new study.

Financial Centre Frankfurt has said the city can act as a "bridge" between London and Europe in the future. 


Frankfurt's skyline (Source: Getty)

And… the losers – at least so far

1. The housing market

Housebuilding company stocks have been battered since the referendum, with Barratts Developments and Persimmon being two of the three biggest FTSE 100 fallers since 23 June. 

Some surveys have suggested asking prices have fallen over the past few weeks, while HM Revenue and Customs transaction data released on Thursday showed completions fell year-on-year in June. 

While it's still early days, and important to remember that many people simply won't trade or buy houses in the immediate post-Brexit environment, this has so far been a tough blow to a sector reliant on consumer confidence.

2. Airlines

EasyJet said earlier this week it had been hit by the Brexit vote as currency volatility had added to an already "difficult trading environment". Consumer confidence has also been hit by the recent Turkey and Nice attacks, as well as air traffic control strikes and other issues.

Another low-cost airline, Wizz Air, halved its plans for growth in UK in the second half of the year after the referendum result was announced. It said its plans to pull out of UK development were “as a direct result of Brexit and the weaker British pound”.

On the other hand, companies specialising in "staycations" could see a boost in sales as the falling pound makes holidaying at home more attractive. GO Outdoors said yesterday its camping gear sales had increased 53 per cent since 23 June, while tents alone were up more than 34 per cent. 


(Source: Getty)

3. Michael Gove

​Probably the most surprising of those who have lost out in the last month, pro-Leave campaigner Michael Gove stepped out of the Conservative Party leadership race ahead of Andrea Leadsom and was axed from the government by Theresa May. 

In between, he reportedly backstabbed fellow Tory MP Boris Johnson, who it is alleged he persuaded to join the Leave camp and then didn't even tell he would be running for party leader.

Johnson is now foreign secretary.  


(Source: Getty)

4. The pound

Oh, Sterling. 

In the month since the UK voted leave, the pound has had a tough time. After plummeting to a 31-year low against the dollar on 27 June to $1.3180, it was still struggling on Friday, when it was down more than one per cent against the dollar in late afternoon trading, at $1.3093.

This followed the news that Markit's UK purchasing managers' index (PMI) dropped to 47.7 in July, down to an 87-month low from 52.4 in June.

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