LONDON MARKETS: FTSE 100 Ends Lower As Traders Watch For Brexit News
November 14 2018 - 2:24PM
Dow Jones News
By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch
Prime Minister Theresa May will present plan to cabinet
U.K. stocks surrendered early gains Wednesday, finishing in the
red as worries that Prime Minister Theresa May and the Conservative
Party would not hash out a Brexit deal in time grew.
How are markets performing?
The U.K.'s FTSE 100 closed down 0.3% to 7,033.79. The index had
traded above 7,100 earlier in the session
The British pound was seeing plenty of zigzag action, last
trading at $1.2902 from $1.2969 late Tuesday. The currency has
swung between a session high of $1.3036 and a low of $1.2879.
What's moving markets?
European Union and U.K. negotiators reached a draft Brexit deal
in Brussels on Tuesday that May was due to put to her cabinet
Wednesday afternoon. A final deal
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/uk-and-eu-negotiators-reach-draft-brexit-agreement-in-brussels-2018-11-13)
must be reached by March 29, when the U.K. is due to leave the
trading bloc, but May's cabinet has to approve any proposal, which
must then be ratified by the British Parliament. Sterling is
sensitive to Brexit news and any strength weighs on those
multinational companies that generate most of their sales in other
currencies.
"There is a distinct possibility that this is a case of one step
forward, two steps back, with a rejection in parliament raising the
possibility of a series of risk events that include a vote of no
confidence in Theresa May and even another referendum of sorts,"
said Joshua Mahoney, market analyst at IG, in a note to
clients.
Meanwhile, data showed stable headline and core prices, which
"will come as a relief to the [Bank of England] who stated that
they could raise rates in both the no-deal and deal Brexit
outcomes," added Mahoney.
But soft growth data from Germany
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/german-economy-skids-abruptly-in-third-quarter-2018-11-14-2485325)
and mixed economic updates
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/china-gets-mixed-signals-on-october-business-data-2018-11-13)
from China were blamed for driving worries about slower growth,
hitting mining names.
Read:Currency traders betting on a Brexit deal are having a
rough time
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/currency-traders-betting-on-a-brexit-deal-are-having-a-rough-time-2018-11-12)
What stocks are moving
Mining stocks were the big losers on Wednesday. Heavyweights Rio
Tinto GPLC(RIO.LN) (RIO.LN) and BHP Billiton PLC(BHP.AU)(BLT.LN)
fell 3.5% and 2.3%, respectively.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 14, 2018 14:09 ET (19:09 GMT)
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