THE sterling pound strengthened slightly on Friday morning (Jul 5) as the Labour party headed for a resounding landslide in the United Kingdom general election.
The British currency was trading at US$1.2770, up 0.1 per cent, as at 11.27 am.
Exit polls after voting closed signalled that the opposition Labour was set to unseat the Conservatives (or Tories) after 14 years.
In a note on Thursday, Swissquote Bank senior analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya said a Labour win is positive for both UK stocks and the pound.
“Combined with a soft dollar, we could see the end of the Tory rule support the pound, and back a move toward 1.30,” she said.
Closer to home, Singapore stocks with exposure to the UK were mixed.
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Transport group ComfortDelGro, which has been expanding its footprint in the UK and Europe, was down 0.7 per cent or S$0.01 to S$1.34, as at 11.27 am.
The group’s subsidiary Metroline in March clinched contracts worth £422 million (S$719.8 million) to run buses in Manchester for five years. In February, another ComfortDelGro unit acquired UK-based transport specialist CMAC Group for £80.2 million.
Property player Ho Bee Land also fell, shedding 1.6 per cent or S$0.03 to S$1.83. It has eight current UK projects, which include office and mixed-use developments.
Dormitory operator Centurion Corporation, as well as real-estate counters CapitaLand Ascott Trust (Clas) and City Developments (CDL), were unmoved as at 11.27 am.
Clas’ stapled securities were flat at S$0.87. Its portfolio includes The Cavendish London, a 230-room hotel, as well as four Citadines apartment-hotels in the British capital.
Meanwhile, Centurion’s stock stayed put at S$0.585. The group runs private student accommodation in several cities in the UK – Bristol, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Nottingham.
CDL, which has several properties in the UK, was trading flat at S$5.33.
In November last year, CDL acquired a 261-unit freehold project in Manchester for £75.6 million, which grew the group’s private rented sector portfolio to 1,648 operational and pipeline units across Leeds, Birmingham and Manchester.
Stapled security group CDL Hospitality Trust fared better, up 0.5 per cent or S$0.005 to S$0.955.
The trust has three hotels in the UK, including Hilton Cambridge City Centre, as well as The Castings, a 352-unit built-to-rent residential development.
