Britain's vote to leave the European Union is still causing turmoil on global stock markets, with prices falling in the United States and Europe. Earlier Monday, a key index in Japan recovered some of the drastic losses it saw in Friday's trading.
In New York, the Dow and the S&P 500 were off more than one percent in Monday's early trading. London's FTSE fell two percent.
Worries that leaving the EU will hurt the British economy pushed the value of the British pound down further. Concerns that an economic slowdown would cut demand for energy sent crude oil prices down further on world markets.
The S&P rating agency cut Britain's credit rating two notches because it said the nation's economic officials and businesses face "a less predictable, stable, and effective policy framework." The agency also expressed concerns about external financing.
In an effort to reassure British and global investors, Britain's finance minister (Chancellor of the Exchequer), George Osborne said, “Our economy is about as strong as it could be to confront the challenge our country now faces.”
Earlier Monday, key stock market indexes in Tokyo and Shanghai recovered some of the ground lost in Friday's major sell off.
