The pound’s drop since the Brexit vote may do more to help the earnings of British exporters than the economy as a whole, as firms selling goods abroad take the exchange-rate windfall to lift profits rather than to increase their market share. Official figures Friday showed export prices in sterling terms jumped more than 12 percent over the past year, suggesting many companies are simply maintaining their foreign-currency prices instead of seeking to sharpen their competitive edge by allowing them to fall. While that’s good news for shareholders, it’s less good for an economy that needs all the help it can get from trade.
To contact the reporter on this story: Lucy Meakin in London at lmeakin1@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Paul Gordon at pgordon6@bloomberg.net, Brian Swint
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