Brexit Britain: falling pound, border fears and a frightened workforce

 A year after Britain voted to leave the EU the pound is at least ten percent weaker, the economy is shaky and may be headed for a downturn and Theresa May’s minority government is weak after losing its majority in parliament after June’s general election.

There’s also the worrying possibility that a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland could unravel the Good Friday Peace Agreement.

The uncertainty is infectious.

In her first policy position after the two year long Brexit negotiations started earlier this month, May set out her plan for the rights of the three million or so EU citizens living in the UK. They will only qualify for “settled” status after five consecutive years living in Britain.

But this has not gone far enough to reassure many EU officials including Guy Verhofstadt, the Brexit co-ordinator for the European Parliament.

A report by the consultancy firm Deloitte released on June 27th suggests that 47 percent of highly skilled EU workers are now considering leaving Britain.

One of them is Joana Ferreira, a dentist who works in a private practice on the outskirts of London, and who arrived from Portugal four and a half years ago.

“I’m just worried about the living conditions, really,” said Ferreira. “Am I going to be able to work? Am I going to get a normal salary, like everyone? Am I going to be kicked out of the country? I don’t know, nobody knows!”

Joana and her husband have a three year old daughter who was born in Britain and they had planned for her to grow up in the country.

“I just feel very insecure of what’s going to happen in the future. I really want to know more so I can plan. Because at the moment, I cannot plan anything in my life,” she said.

Joana’s employer Smita Mehra, the managing director of The Neem Tree practice, is also worried as 60 percent of the staff at the four practices she manages are non-British EU nationals.

Read more: Brexit Britain: falling pound, border fears and a frightened workforce | Euronews

Banking Industry: Yellen: U.S. Banks Are Still a Risk to Financial Stabilityby- by David Francis

As the US economy gains strength, the near-collapse of the U.S. financial system after the fall of Lehman Brothers in 2008 is fading from the memories of most Americans. On Wednesday, Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen warned the United States is still at risk of something similar happening again. 
 
Testifying before the House Financial Services Committee, Yellen said “substantial compliance and risk management issues” remain at some of the larger financial firms that the Fed regulates. She didn’t get into specifics, but her message to lawmakers was clear: Banks are healthier than they were at the start of the Great Recession, but they still aren’t in tip-top shape — and that poses a risk to the U.S. economy. 

“While we have seen some evidence of improved risk management, internal controls, and governance … compliance breakdowns in recent years have undermined confidence,” Yellen said in prepared testimony. She was speaking specifically of 16 large financial companies, including the biggest U.S. banks, that are overseen by the Fed. 

“[This] could have implications for financial stability, given the firms’ size, complexity, and interconnectedness,” Yellen said.

Read more: Yellen: U.S. Banks Are Still a Risk to Financial Stability | Foreign Policy

Banking meltdown: Morgan Stanley down 48.5 percent for the year; Goldman Sachs 44 percent; and Bank of America off about 57 percent

Morgan Stanley is down 48.5 percent for the year; Goldman Sachs has fallen 44 percent; and Bank of America is off about 57 percent. And the cost of insuring Morgan Stanley’s debt for five years through credit-default swaps, though it eased on Tuesday, remains at levels that were seen during the financial crisis.

Adding to Morgan Stanley’s woes, Friday was the last day of Morgan Stanley’s third quarter. The company is set to release its earnings in a few weeks, and securities laws limit what it can say about its financial condition. Unable to reach Zero Hedge, Morgan Stanley’s investor relations department went into overdrive, quickly pulling together talking points for callers that were circulated to both media and investor relations staff members.

It is a war that is being fought in large part in the shadows: against anonymous blogs and market whispers, but also against undefined fears about exposure to troubled European banks. While those worries are common to all the big Wall Street banks, Morgan Stanley, as the smallest, is perhaps the most vulnerable among them.

For more: Morgan Tries to Quell Rumors About Its Holdings - NYTimes.com