London’s FTSE 100 surrendered its earlier gains to trade sharply lower by lunchtime as news of a new Covid lockdown in Austria and speculation that Germany will follow suit hit sentiment.
By midday, the blue chip benchmark was down 0.6% at 7,211.23 points.
Earlier, the Office for National Statistics reported that retail sales volumes rose by 0.8% in October, compared with economists’ forecast for a 0.5% rise.
That strength was partly attributed to consumers starting their Christmas shopping early, with non-food sales rising by 4.2% as shoppers bought toys, clothes and sports equipment.
CORPORATE NEWS
Ocado (OCDO) topped the FTSE 100 leader board at lunchtime, shares in the robotics-led groceries platform ripening 8.6% to £19.28 on speculation Marks & Spencer (MKS) could buy out Ocado’s UK retail arm, of which the high street stalwart is a 50% shareholder.
Shares in multinational consumer goods giant Unilever (ULVR) gained 0.5% to £38.41 it agreed to sell its global tea business to CVC Capital Partners for €4.5 billion or roughly £3.8 billion.
The sale, which includes household brands Lipton’s and PG Tips, is part of Unilever’s strategy to improve shareholder returns by focusing on higher-growth and higher-margin businesses.
KINGFISHER SLIPS AS SALES SLOW
Shares in home improvement retailer Kingfisher (KGF) fell 3.9% to 324p despite the firm upgrading its outlook following strong sales in the third quarter.
The company said it had also made a ‘good’ start to the fourth quarter, with like for like sales to 13 November up 0.4% on last year and 13.2% on a two-year basis.
Full year adjusted pre-tax profit is now expected to be towards the top end of the guided range of £910 million to £950 million on the back of stronger than anticipated second half like-for-like sales.
Property company Great Portland Estates (GPOR) raised its portfolio rental value guidance, driven by the positive performance of its office portfolio in the first half of the year. The shares moved 0.3% higher to 749.5p on the news.
Health, safety and environmental electronics equipment designer Halma (HLMA) was marked 1.2% higher to £31.61 as it unveiled a modest acquisition and as the market continued to reappraise its reaction to yesterday’s results.
Distribution and logistics provider Wincanton (WIN) posted a strong increase in first half sales and earnings thanks to new customer wins and contract extensions, lifting the shares up 4% to 396p.
RYANAIR TO EXIT LONDON MARKET
Shares in low cost airline Ryanair (RYA) drifted 3% lower to €15.79 after it announced its intention to delist from the London Stock Exchange next month.
The group maintained that the decision was prompted by the costs related to retaining an additional listing.
Plastics company Carclo (CAR) sparked up 7.6% to 44.7p after lifting its annual outlook on performance after swinging to a profit in the first half of the year, driven by strength in its technical plastics business.
