One in three advisers now say they are more likely to recommend defensive stocks because of Brexit. This is has increased from one in 10, when a similar survey was conducted a year ago.
The research, by Canada Life found that 19 per cent of advisers were now looking to invest overseas, a year ago this figure stood at just 7 per cent.
However only a tiny minority of advisers (3 per cent) aren’t investing in an EU jurisdiction because of Brexit.
Canada Life’s executive director Richard Priestley says: “Although we are only a few months away from Brexit, the impact remains far from clear. Advisers continue to plan client portfolios that address the known and unknown alike.
“While the exact consequences of Brexit continue to remain unclear, it’s likely that in the event of a hard Brexit we would see some devaluation in sterling. That would benefit those businesses with overseas revenues, something advisers may need to keep in mind in terms of their clients’ financial strategies. In fact, as total UK exports last year were worth around £616 billion, you can get an awful lot of exposure to overseas revenues by investing in UK companies that export.
“Our research suggests more advisers are likely to take a cautious approach until the impacts are better understood.”