Britain is no longer the world's fifth largest economy after post-Brexit crash

One of the main promises of the Leave campaign was that it would benefit the British economy, but in the short term that doesn't seem to be happening.

After it was announced on Friday morning that the United Kingdom had backed Brexit, the value of the British pound immediately dropped to the lowest it has been in over 30 years.

One of the biggest points put forward by the pro-leave campaigners was that, as the fifth largest economy in the world, the UK would be more than able to handle leaving the European Union and the single market.

Unfortunately, it seems that the markets of the world have disagreed wholeheartedly with this assertion and have sold their sterling en mass.

While it is undoubtedly an initial, knee-jerk reaction from the markets, the banks are predicting further hits for the sterling on the international market, with HSBC saying they expect the value of the pound to drop all the down to $1.20 by the end of the year.


"This is a seismic and largely unexpected event which is likely to have a massive impact on financial markets," the bank said.

And that impact can already be seen, as The London Economic are reporting that the fall in the value of the pound means that France is now the fifth largest economy in the world, dropping the United Kingdom down to sixth.

The UK is no longer the world's 5th largest economy. The £ has fallen so far that France has overtaken us. #EUref — The London Economic (@LondonEconomic) June 24, 2016