LONDON: London-listed shares broke a three-day winning run on Thursday as commodities giant Glencore tumbled after scrapping its dividend to pay down debt, while the Bank of England forecast a slower-than-expected rebound from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Glencore dropped 8.1% as it also booked a $3.2 billion impairment charge, driving the FTSE 100 down 1.3%. With the pound stronger, London shares in miners BHP, Rio Tinto fell after solid gains on Tuesday, as did oil majors BP and Royal Dutch Shell.
Despite a stimulus-led rally since April, the FTSE 100 is still down about 20% this year with surging Covid-19 cases raising the spectre of further lockdowns. This compares to a 3% rise for the S&P 500 with a US fiscal aid package eyed. Homebuilders Taylor Wimpey, Barratt Developments and Persimmon lost between 3.7% and 4.3%.
At the other end, insurer Aviva's shares shot up 4.6% as analysts cheered its decision to reduce focus on Asia and Europe after reporting a 12% drop in first-half operating profit. The mid-cap FTSE 250 was down 0.9%, with industrial and financial stocks among the biggest drags.
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