Buying a beer abroad ‘nearly 50p more expensive typically since Brexit vote’

The cost of buying a beer abroad could be around 16% or nearly 50p more expensive now than three years ago due to the weakened pound, according to analysis.

Foreign exchange firm Caxton FX compiled a “Brexit beer index” by looking at the average cost of a beer now in various countries.

It compared currency exchange rates now with those in June 2016, when the EU referendum was held, to show the impact of currency movements over the past three years.

Across all countries, the cost had increased by 16% or the equivalent of 49p in sterling, from £3.12 to £3.61.

The index did not take inflation into account – so if rising living costs over the past three years were also factored in, UK beer drinkers could be even more out of pocket.

The index found that a beer in Thailand, for example, may cost around the equivalent of £2.25 in sterling – a 38% surge in terms of the exchange rate difference alone compared with 2016.

Visitors to the United States have seen the cost of a beer rocket by a fifth (20%) in the same period, with a typical beer now costing £4.18.

In Norway, the price has increased by 9% to £7.66 on average, and Iceland UK tourists face paying the equivalent of £7.07 – around 16% more than three years ago.

In France. the average cost is the equivalent of £4.69 – also a 16% increase on three years ago, the research found.

UK tourists may find better value in the Czech Republic and Romania, where the average price of a beer is still only around £1.30, according to the research.

Alana Parsons, from Caxton, said: “These extra costs, unlike the beer, are hard to swallow, but holidaymakers can keep the additional expense to a minimum by thinking about their currency needs and overall holiday costs from the moment a trip is booked.”