Brexit economy: sterling fall hits public finances and fails to boost trade

The latest monthly Guardian analysis uncovers signs amid the ongoing slowdown that the impact of the pound's depreciation is starting to fade

The sharp fall in sterling triggered by the EU referendum result is having an adverse effect on Britain's already weak public finances but has yet to bring about the expected improvement in the trade deficit, a Guardian analysis of the economic news of the past month shows.

In a period in which business confidence took a hit from the government's loss of its overall majority in the general election, the Guardian's monthly tracker found little evidence that the impact of a more competitive currency was offsetting a slowdown in consumer spending caused by dearer imports.

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