The pound just rose above $1.26 as riots hit the US – and the FTSE 100 falls 

The pound jumped above $1.26 this morning for the first time since the so-called flash crash back in October, after riots in the US sent the dollar lower.

Sterling strengthened against both the dollar and the euro, rising 0.6 per cent against the dollar to $1.2636, and 0.7 per cent against the euro, to €1.1612.

In the wake of reports of social unrest, the dollar dipped against the yen, falling 0.2 per cent to ¥106.57.

Meanwhile, having fallen more than 150 points yesterday, today the FTSE 100 had that sinking feeling again, falling 0.6 per cent to 6,786 points in early trading.

Analysts warned riots in the US overnight – which Donald Trump blamed on “professional protestors” in a tweet – could hit markets.

“The social unrest… represents a risk for markets which traders should not ignore,” said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at Think Markets.

“This is very important and President Trump needs to address this issue as he has taken custody of a divided country.

“Yes, the equity market has achieved another record high over in the US, however, if these protests picked up more steam, we could have some serious problems which could be followed by a sharp sell-off for the market. Investors could lose the confidence and that might result in a move from risk on trade to risk off trade.”

The FTSE 100 was dragged down by Randgold Resources, which broke its winning streak to fall almost five per cent to 6,072p in early trading. Other miners, including Fresnillo, Mondi, Glencore and Anglo American followed suit, while BAE Systems – another winner in the immediate aftermath of Trump’s election – falling 1.8 per cent to 601.2p.

Source: CITYA.M. – The pound just rose above $1.26 as riots hit the US – and the FTSE 100 falls

---