May made clear that a rejection of her deal makes no Brexit more likely. A no-deal Brexit is apparently less attractive than staying in the EU. What are the economics?

Although it could be strategy, the position of May seems a cold analysis of the costs and benefits of the available options. Staying in the EU is costly, given the referendum outcome, but an uncontrolled Brexit reasonably costs even more. The shock of a no-deal Brexit could have an unbearable impact by sending waves through (the structure of) the British economy and changing how the UK is viewed. A no-deal situation will hamper trade, and will cause problems with the supply of goods. Especially when goods like medicine are impacted, the monetary and non-monetary costs become enormous. In terms of international relations partners might wonder how stable and reliable their ally (still) is, if no-deal is the outcome. Especially when the UK would not pay for its obligations to the EU it already has.

Back on the European mainland the difficulty is to what extent to prepare for a no-deal Brexit anyway. Because although that scenario seems too costly, it cannot be excluded yet either. It is good to know however that across the Channel people are also aware of the strong downsides of no-deal Brexit.