LONDON, Jan 12 ― London stocks ended lower yesterday as rising coronavirus cases across Europe stoked worries about its near-term economic impact, while Signature Aviation jumped on reaching an agreement for a takeover deal with Global Infrastructure Partners.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index fell 1.1 per cent, after gaining for five consecutive sessions, with auto healthcare and mining stocks leading the declines.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Britain was in “a race against time” to roll out vaccines as deaths hit record highs and hospitals ran out of oxygen. His top medical adviser Chris Whitty said the pandemic's worst weeks were imminent.
Miners Rio Tinto and BHP Group were the top drags on the index, as metal prices dropped on demand worries fueled by surging coronavirus cases in top metals consumer China.
“Covid-19 risks have taken centerstage again after last week's rally and the only reason why the FTSE 100 has not fallen further today is because the pound has taken most of the heat,” said Connor Campbell, a financial analyst at SpreadEx.
The British pound dropped 0.5 per cent against the US dollar to its lowest level since December 29 due to concerns about the spread of the virus in the country, while global cases of Covid-19 surpassed 90 million.
The mid-cap index ended 1.4 per cent lower, led by weakness in consumer stocks, while JD Sports was the top gainer on the index after it forecast its full-year profit to be “significantly ahead” of market expectations.
“It demonstrates the fact that retail spending itself has held up reasonably well despite the crisis ― it’s just that sales have shifted from physical stores to the internet,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
Signature Aviation jumped 7.2 per cent after Global Infrastructure Partners, the former owner of London's Gatwick Airport, reached an agreement to buy the company for about US$4.63 billion (RM18.8 billion), trumping an approach from Blackstone Group. ― Reuters
Source: Malay Mail
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