PARIS: Europe's main stock markets are headed for a steep fall of at least seven percent at the opening after Britain's decision to leave the EU, brokers said Friday.
London stocks, in the frontline of the fall-out from the vote to leave, are likely to plunge around seven percent when trading gets underway at 0700 GMT, analysts at both CMC Markets and ETX Capital predicted.
Inside the eurozone, the Paris stock market is expected to see a similar drop, while Frankfurt shares are likely to fare only slightly better, with expectations for a six-percent fall of the German DAX index.
"European markets are now expected to open considerably lower, with FTSE futures pointing seven percent lower and this could extend further," said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda.
"Financial markets throughout the night have been chaotic to say the least and this may continue as the day progresses," he said.
In Asian markets, the pound collapsed to a 31-year low against the dollar, while the yen surged against the US currency as investors fled to safety.
In the weeks leading up to Thursday's historic vote, there had been widespread warnings that a vote to leave would cause a rout across global markets that would wipe trillions off valuations, just months after a painful China-fuelled sell-off.
Investors were clearly wrong-footed by the vote outcome. Stock markets and the pound had climbed steadily in the week ahead of Thursday's referendum on expectations that Britons would reject Brexit.
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