By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K. stocks and the pound dropped on
Monday as nervousness ahead of the Scottish independence referendum
intensified after a poll released over the weekend put the
pro-independence voters in the lead.
The FTSE 100 index lost 0.3% to 6,837.14, for a second straight
day in the red. The pound (GBPUSD) slumped to $1.6170 from $1.6328
in late Friday in New York, and after hitting a intraday low of
$1.6146, the lowest since November.
The weakness came as a survey by pollster YouGov. released over
the weekend showed 47% of the potential voters were in favor of an
independent Scotland, while 45% said no. That's the first time
ahead of the Sept. 18 referendum that the "yes" to independence
camp has been in the lead.
"I highly doubt anyone has an accurate model of what Scottish
independence means for England but following the recent YouGov
poll; analysts have concluded that it's not good," said Jonathan
Sudaria, dealer at London Capital Group, said in a note.
Banks posted some of the biggest losses in London on Monday,
with shares of Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBS) down 2.7%,
Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LYG) off 2.6% and Barclays PLC (BCS) 1%
lower.
Posting the biggest decline in the FTSE 100, shares of
Associated British Foods PLC slid 4.3% after the food and clothing
company released a trading update.
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