Strong pound batters British blue chips

Diageo, Rolls-Royce and BAE are latest to count cost of sterling’s ‘perfect storm’ as value of sales dives

Kathryn Cooper Published: 27 July 2014

http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/business/Economy/article1439097.ece 

Multinationals such as Diageo are facing a ‘perfect storm’ of stronger sterling and slowing global growth (Getty) 
 

CORPORATE Britain will this week reveal the damage done by the strong pound, with a clutch of FTSE 100 companies expected to report billions of pounds wiped off the value of sales. 

The country’s biggest multinationals, including Diageo, Rolls-Royce and BAE Systems, are all expected to lament a “perfect storm” of stronger sterling and weaker global growth, particularly in emerging markets. 

The results come as figures published today show profit warnings from Britain’s quoted companies have jumped to their highest level for three years, largely because of the strong pound. 

Currency movements triggered more than a fifth of the 137 profit warnings in the first half of the year, up from just 3% last year, according to the report by the accountants EY.