LONDON MARKETS: China Slowdown, Brexit Grind Pulls U.K. Stock Markets Lower
December 14 2018 - 9:07AM
Dow Jones News
By Emily Horton
Sterling losses stem slide for FTSE 100
London markets were red on Friday, as slow Chinese business
activity in November rebooted refreshed worries over global
economic growth.
Meanwhile, Brexit uncertainty continues to hang in the air amid
a lack of signals U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May will win
concessions from Brussels her government wants.
How are the markets performing?
The FTSE 100 fell by 0.7% to 6,828.46, after barely moving on
Thursday. The index is looking at a weekly gain of 0.8%.
The British pound slid to $1.2555, compared with $1.2655 late
Thursday in New York.
What is driving markets?
Trade stress appeared to be takin a toll on China, as industrial
production and retail sales data
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stock-futures-under-pressure-after-weak-china-data-2018-12-14)indicated
renewed weakness, official data revealed. November figures missed
the 5.9% forecast estimated by economists, with value-added
industrial output up by 5.4% in November from a year earlier,
slowing down from a 5.9% on-year increase in October, according to
the National Bureau of Statistics.
U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May was under pressure again in
Brussels as she attempted to bid for a new Brexit concession from
her European Union counterparts. However, there were no signs she
had successfully managed to sway the leaders at the summit in
Belgium
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/uk-parliament-must-wait-till-2019-to-vote-on-brexit-deal-theresa-mat-struck-with-eu-2018-12-13).
May was expected to speak
What stocks are active?
Heavy-weight mining stocks dropped, with Glencore PLC (GLEN.LN)
down by almost 3% and Rio Tinto (RIO.LN) falling 2%.
Betting Group GVC Holdings (GVC.LN) was the biggest gainer in
London, jumping 13% on the news that it had acquired Australian
digital sports betting group Neds International. Paddy Power
Betfair PLC gained 2.5%.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 14, 2018 08:52 ET (13:52 GMT)
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