Collapse of building firm highlights risk of buying ‘very British’ shares

Viewed from the office of a Parisian asset manager — the collapse of

Viewed from the office of a Parisian asset manager — the collapse of Carillion the failed UK building services giant which holds scores of contracts from the British government — are early signs of the pain Brexit is expected to bring and another reason to stay underweight on British shares.

“For all ‘very British’, British companies”, that are almost entirely exposed to the UK economy, “one can see that there is an issue with faltering sales”, said Olivier de Berranger, who heads the asset management unit at France’s La Financière de l’Echiquier.