London midday: Stocks edge lower as England tiers revealed
London stocks had edged a little further into the red by midday on Thursday as England’s Covid-19 tiers were announced.
The FTSE was down 0.5% at 6,358.59 in relatively quiet trade, with the session expected to remain so as US markets are closed for Thanksgiving.
IG said: "There is always a certain weariness about European markets on Thanksgiving Day, knowing that they are almost certainly condemned to a directionless session with little volume and not much movement, and even when there is it is likely to be quickly unwound once the Americans get fully back in the saddle from Monday.
"Perhaps this year they will be thankful for the rest after the craziness of 2020 and all the volatility that has come with it. November has not been exactly quiet either, with stock markets finding their springboard to a fresh rally thanks to the election and vaccine news. That rally has cooled this week, leaving indices to drift back from their recent highs but without any real conviction. Without the US today and (mostly) tomorrow we can look forward to more drift, especially since investors are expecting more gains in December."
Investors were mulling an announcement from Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who revealed which tiers different regions would be under when the national lockdown ends next Wednesday, with London in tier 2, as widely expected.
Market participants were also digesting news that German Chancellor Angela Merkel has decided to extend the country’s ‘lockdown lite’ until 20 December.
CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson said: "The decision by the German government to go down this road suggests that the coming winter is likely to be a long hard slog for businesses all over Europe, as populations tire of having their freedoms restricted, and concerns grow about the prospect of much longer term economic damage."
In equity markets, banks were under the cosh, with Lloyds, NatWest, Barclays and Virgin Money all lower.
Ex-dividends were also a drag, with Persimmon, Imperial Brands, Land Securities, CMC Markets and Bellway all in the frame.
Bodycote was under the cosh after announcing another restructuring and saying it expects the civil aerospace market to remain near the current low levels for at least the next 18 months.
On the upside, sales, marketing and support services group DCC was boosted by an upgrade to ‘overweight’ at Morgan Stanley.
Britvic fizzed higher after it reported a small rise in full-year pre-tax profit as lower costs helped to offset a revenue decline as its out-of-home segment was dented by the Covid-19 crisis.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 6,358.59 -0.51%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,326.55 -1.24%
techMARK (TASX) 3,923.71 -0.28%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Flutter Entertainment (FLTR) 13,980.00p 5.11%
DCC (DCC) 5,836.00p 3.22%
Polymetal International (POLY) 1,612.50p 3.17%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 6,632.00p 2.92%
Fresnillo (FRES) 1,107.00p 1.79%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 467.80p 1.37%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,636.00p 1.31%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) 7,822.00p 1.24%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 1,079.00p 1.12%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 4,773.00p 1.12%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 36.00p -5.59%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 1,650.00p -5.01%
Persimmon (PSN) 2,697.00p -4.83%
NATWEST GROUP PLC ORD 100P (NWG) 156.60p -4.19%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 1,429.50p -4.12%
Land Securities Group (LAND) 667.30p -3.83%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 164.30p -3.78%
Barclays (BARC) 139.00p -3.07%
Standard Life Aberdeen (SLA) 268.10p -3.00%
BT Group (BT.A) 122.00p -2.79%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Petropavlovsk (POG) 27.05p 4.64%
Future (FUTR) 1,676.00p 2.57%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 219.40p 2.33%
ICG Enterprise Trust (ICGT) 916.00p 2.23%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 112.35p 1.86%
PZ Cussons (PZC) 229.00p 1.78%
Energean (ENOG) 727.40p 1.58%
easyJet (EZJ) 842.20p 1.52%
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust (USA) 276.00p 1.47%
Spirent Communications (SPT) 254.50p 1.19%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Virgin Money UK (VMUK) 125.45p -10.39%
Brewin Dolphin Holdings (BRW) 260.50p -6.63%
CMC Markets (CMCX) 381.50p -6.15%
Rathbone Brothers (RAT) 1,420.00p -5.84%
Bodycote (BOY) 722.50p -5.80%
SSP Group (SSPG) 332.00p -5.14%
WH Smith (SMWH) 1,425.00p -4.94%
Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 158.90p -4.42%
Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 214.50p -4.03%
Frasers Group (FRAS) 441.60p -3.96%