UK Election: Markets turning nervous as ‘hung Parliament’ odds skyrocket

The financial markets are becoming nervous by the prospect that the UK election could result in a hung parliament, with no clear majority in sight. A YouGov model has already predicted a hung parliament and the exit polls have also pointed to the same, with Tories gaining 314 seats (12 short of an outright majority) and Labour Party winning 266 seats.

The pound has declined more than 2 percent against the dollar, trading at 1.2745 against the USD. UK’s benchmark stock index is also expected to open much lower as the odds for a hung parliament skyrockets at the betting market.

• While the betting market is still predicting with 90 percent probability the most seats won by the Conservatives, the probability of a hung parliament has skyrocketed to 87 percent from just 20 percent before the election.
• The market is now pricing a 47 percent probability that the Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn will be the next Prime Minister, up from just 15 percent before the election.

Latest results:

With 130 seats declared, UK’s Labour Party is leading with 62 seats and 9.5 percent of the votes. Conservatives have won 50 seats with 7.7 percent of the votes. Scottish National Party has won 11 seats. Democratic Union party has won 3 seats. Plaid Cymru, which is a social-democratic political party in Wales advocating for Welsh independence from the United Kingdom has won 2 seats, and Sinn Fein has won 1 seats.