Sterling surges to 18-month high as exit poll points to Tory majority

Britain is heading into a winter election with the slowest annual economic growth for nearly a decade (Picture: PA Wire/PA Images)

Sterling has surged to an 18-month high after an exit poll predicted a huge Conservative Party majority.

The pound was up 1.85 per cent to 1.342 dollars and up 1.09 per cent to 1.202 euros within minutes of the announcement - the highest level since June 2018.

The joint Sky/BBC/ITV poll gives the Tories 368 seats with Labour on 191, the​ SNP on 55 and LibDems 13. The Tory majority is projected to be 86.

The exit poll suggests the biggest majority for a Conservative government since 1987.

It followed a day of election jitters for values, complicated by a US-China trade war breakthrough that strengthened the dollar.