LONDON: Britain's top share index slipped on Monday as a rally sparked by Donald Trump's election as US president appeared to falter with financial and energy shares showing the biggest declines, though gold miners and utilities rose. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed down 0.6 percent.
The benchmark index is still up about 8 percent so far this year even after falling around 5 percent since its October peak.
The UK banking index fell 1.3 percent, dragged down by worries over the impact on Italian banks from a referendum vote on constitutional reforms on Dec. 4 that could topple Matteo Renzi's reformist government.
Lloyds Banking Group, Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland fell by 1.5 to 2.6 percent, as Italian banks sank to an 8-week low.
Shares in energy companies also fell despite crude prices rising more than 2 percent in volatile trading.
Brent crude swung from loss to gain as the market wrestled with the shaky prospect of major producers being able to agree output cuts at a meeting on Wednesday.
Shares in BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Tullow Oil 1.4 to 2.3 percent, with the wider UK oil and gas index down 1.2 percent.
Among mid-caps, shares in Man Group fell 4.6 percent after Exane downgraded its rating on the world's biggest listed hedge fund to "neutral", and rival Aberdeen Asset Management also fell almost 4 percent after profits fell and outflows continued.
Consumer-facing businesses slipped, with traders citing early indications that retail sales during last week's Black Friday promotion had disappointed and consumer spending could weaken into next year.
Retailers Next and Marks & Spencer fell 2.6 and 1.6 percent respectively, while broadband and pay TV providers BT and Sky fell 2.4 and 2.3 percent.
"The outlook for the UK continues to remain fragile and domestic-focused high street retail names will see pressure on margin and growth," said Atif Latif, director at Guardian Stockbrokers, said.
The move in the blue chip FTSE 100 index echoed falls in Europe and on Wall Street.
US stocks pulled back from last week's record highs, suggesting three weeks of rapid gains on Donald Trump's infrastructure spending plans may be over.
The uncertainty surrounding stocks and oil prices lifted utilities, seen as relatively safe due to their steady income and regular dividends, said Michael Hewson, analyst at CMC Markets.
Centrica closed up 2.6 percent, SSE up 2.1 percent, and United Utilities gained 1.5 percent.
Gold miners also benefited from a more than 1 percent rise in gold prices, which recovered from 9-1/2 month lows as the dollar extended losses after touching a near 14-year high last week. Shares in Randgold Resources, Polymetal and Fresnillo rose between 3.2 percent and 4.3 percent.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.