Aye, we can: British markets jittery over Scotland vote

http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/markets/2014/09/08/scotland-independence-poll-financials-currencies-british-pound/15270691/



The British government plans to offer Scotland more financial autonomy in the coming days as polls predict a very close vote in the upcoming referendum on Scottish independence. A new poll shows the "Yes" campaign slightly ahead.

Aye, we can: British markets jittery over Scotland vote
Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY
7:45 a.m. EDT September 8, 2014

The campaign to keep Scotland part of the United Kingdom appeared to be in disarray Monday, new polling showed, with anxiety spilling over into British markets and the pound sliding to a 10-month low against the dollar.

The pound fell as much as 1.4% against the dollar — its lowest level since November — before recovering slightly, as a new poll showed a surge in support for Scottish independence just ten days before a vote that may have profound consequences for the U.K.'s political and constitutional future .

The referendum on Sept. 18 is injecting major uncertainty into the U.K.'s financial services industry but concerns escalated early this week with the release of a new survey published over the weekend by YouGov — a market-research firm — showing that independence's backers for the first time have taken the lead in the debate.

The data revealed that 47% of voters now prefer to secede from the 307-year-old union with England against 45% who want to stay. The remaining voters polled were undecided.