FTSE 100 movers: Glencore slides on SFO probe; Burberry boosted by deal news
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Thursday 05 Dec 2019
(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was down 0.8% at 7,134.81 in afternoon trade on Thursday, weighed down by sterling strength and a slide in Glencore shares.
Glencore was under the cosh after the miner said the Serious Fraud Office had launched an investigation into suspected bribery at the company. "Glencore will co-operate with the SFO investigation," it said.
In May 2018, Bloomberg reported that the SFO had concerns about Glencore's activities in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the miner's links to Israeli billionaire Dan Gertler. It said at the time that investigators at the SFO were planning to seek formal approval for a full probe into Glencore's dealings in Congo.
RBC Capital Markets analyst Tyler Broda said: "This is an obvious negative for the Glencore investment case and adds to the complications of the ongoing US Department of Justice and CFTC investigations around activities in DRC, Venezuela and Nigeria.
"The scope of the SFO investigation, albeit with limited detail, appears to be wider (NB the DOJ also has criminal investigative powers) and potentially increases the overall penalty should Glencore be eventually found guilty or reach a settlement. This said, peer Rio Tinto has also been under an SFO investigation surrounding activities in Guinea since 24 July 2017 so this is not unprecedented occurrence. However, we believe this clearly will hamper sentiment in what remains a complex investment case for investors."
Paper and packaging group DS Smith was in the red despite posting a 31% jump in first-half profit as it reaped the benefits of a rise in online shopping. Peers Smurfit Kappa and Mondi were also weaker.
Travel company TUI was knocked lower by a rating downgrade at Commerzbank.
Going the other way, luxury fashion brand Burberry racked up solid gains as Italian down jacket and ski wear maker Moncler surged following a report that Gucci owner Kering could be interested in buying the company.
FTSE 100 - Risers
NMC Health (NMC) 2,543.00p 4.44%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 2,068.00p 4.02%
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 197.35p 2.36%
Fresnillo (FRES) 556.20p 1.98%
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 226.50p 1.80%
Centrica (CNA) 80.42p 1.80%
BT Group (BT.A) 189.72p 1.79%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 217.20p 1.78%
British Land Company (BLND) 595.80p 1.74%
ITV (ITV) 143.10p 1.45%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Glencore (GLEN) 222.15p -6.80%
Smith (DS) (SMDS) 353.90p -6.60%
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 965.20p -4.58%
Evraz (EVR) 342.80p -4.03%
Smurfit Kappa Group (SKG) 2,612.00p -3.26%
Mondi (MNDI) 1,614.00p -1.77%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,783.00p -1.59%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,018.50p -1.46%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 4,549.00p -1.37%
WPP (WPP) 947.60p -1.29%
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