However, it was noticeable that the crash occurred on very low volumes and the selling momentum was most likely amplified by the triggering of automatic stop-loss orders. RBC Capital Markets managing director and chief economist Su-Lin Ong said the pound had already been under considerable pressure as fears about a hard "Brexit" mounted.
"As far as we can see the only piece of news this morning is a comment from French president Francois Hollande in the Financial Times talking about a hard separation of the UK from Europe," Ms Ong said. "However a lot of similar comments like this have been made before, so it is hard to see a cause. "The speed of the move has got a lot to do with the conditions, sterling (pound) already being under pressure and the thinness of the trade this morning."
