Cameron Falls on His Sword as Britain Stuns World, Leaves EU  

ANZ said in a research note that although the Brexit result is unlikely to affect China’s immediate economic outlook, the event “reminds us that we are still pencilling in one more additional RRR cut,” referring to banks’ reserve requirement ratio.

In Japan, the   Nikkei 225 Index dipped 7.9 per cent, closing below 15,000 for the first time in more than four months. That’s the steepest drop in more than 16 years.

Meanwhile, the yen surged, briefly trading below 100 yen to the dollar for the first time since November 2013. That represents another setback for “Abenomics,” which depends in part on a weak yen to boost exports and encourage domestic consumption.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he would take steps to stabilize the markets and scheduled a meeting of his Cabinet for late Friday.

Finance Minister Taro Aso said Japan would consider “currency swaps” as a way to stabilize the yen, and Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda said he would work with overseas central banks, as well, according to Japan’s Kyodo News service.

The JSE of South Africa, which is the largest market in Africa suffered its biggest daily fall this year as a result of the Brexit vote. The JSE All-Share Index fell 3.56 per cent. Similarly, the JSE blue-chip top 40 index lost 3.97 per ccent. Financials dropped 4.78 per cent and banks were 3.72 per cent lower. General retailers dropped 3.63 per cent and industrials shed 3.41 per cent.

In Nigeria, the Nigerian Stock Exchange All-Share Index fell 1.36 per cent to halt a bullish run as investors took profit   following the   Brexit victory.

The Nigerian equities market has enjoyed an unprecedented rally on hew back of the new forex policy before the Brexit vote.

Speaking on the Brexit victory,  Dominick Chirichella, senior partner at the Energy Management Institute in New York, said: “This is an historic event and will not be swept under the rug very quickly. That said, markets will not remain in turmoil as they are at the moment for an extended period of time. There is no indication that the global financial markets are anywhere near a meltdown as we saw in 2008. The UK will not collapse and the EU will not collapse anytime soon.

Merkel warns EU against kneejerk reaction to Brexit

Meanwhile, German Chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday warned EU member states against drawing hasty conclusions about Britain’s decision to quit the bloc, as that risked further splitting Europe. We take note of the British people’s decision with regret. There is no doubt that this is a blow to Europe and to the European unification process.

“But what the consequences of this would be… would depend on whether we — the other 27 member states of the EU — prove to be willing and able to not draw quick and simple conclusions from the referendum in Great Britain, which would only further divide Europe,” said Merkel.

Member states should “calmly and prudently analyse and evaluate the situation, before making the right decisions together,” said Merkel, who will host talks with French President Francois Hollande, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and European Council president Donald Tusk in Berlin on Monday.

Buhari commends Cameron’s statesmanship…

In a related development, President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday expressed regret at the resignation of British Prime Minister David Cameron.

The president said Nigeria had enjoyed remarkable goodwill, support and understanding under the capable leadership of the outgoing Prime Minister over the years.

The president said Cameron’s resignation in response to the outcome of a referendum that supported Britain to leave the European Union “was a demonstration of courage by a democratic leader who respects the will of the people, even if he didn’t agree with their decision.”

Buhari noted that by ‘‘putting the will of the people before his political future, the Prime Minister proved himself to be a selfless leader with respect for democracy and voters’ sovereignty.’’