London midday: Stocks sharply lower as Covid-19 updates roll in
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Monday 23 Mar 2020
(Sharecast News) - London stocks were still firmly in the red by midday on Monday amid growing concerns about the impact of the coronavirus, as investors waded through another deluge of Covid-19 updates, with US Senate deadlock over coronavirus stimulus souring the mood further.
The FTSE 100 was down 3.8% at 4,991.20.
Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell said: "The key thing this Monday will be the progress of the stimulus package in the US, namely whether or not Republicans and Democrats can reach a bi-partisan agreement
"Arguing, in the words of Chuck Schumer, that the $1.8 trillion package is a 'large corporate bailout with no protections for workers and virtually no oversight', the Democrats blocked the bill on Sunday night, with a 47-47 split leaving it short of the required 60 votes.
"Even if the reasons behind the Democrats' intransigence are sound, America's inability to move things forwards stands in contrast to many of its now free-spending peers, and has sent the market into another tailspin."
On the corporate front, Covid-19 updates kept rolling in.
Associated British Foods slumped as it said Primark's decision to close all its stores will cost ?650m a month in lost sales. ABF said it was cutting costs at Primark and that these measures together with government support should allow it to recover about half of operating costs.
Broadcaster ITV lost ground after it scrapped its dividend and withdrew market guidance as the coronavirus crisis ate into advertising revenues and forced the broadcaster to put productions on hold.
Transport operator Stagecoach slid as it issued a profit warning and said it was unlikely to pay any further dividends as the coronavirus pandemic hit passenger numbers.
IWG retreated as the workspace provider said it was suspending its dividend and temporarily halting its share buyback programme due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Drinks company Britvic fizzed lower as it warned that 2020 earnings and revenue will take a "material" hit from the coronavirus.
Oil giant Shell was in the black, however, after saying it was cutting capital expenditure, underlying operating costs and postponing the next phase of its share buyback to conserve cash in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. The company said it would cut underlying operating costs by $3bn - $4bn a year over the next 12 months compared to 2019 levels and reduce cash capital expenditure to $20bn or below for 2020 from a planned level of around $25bn.
Supermarket retailers Sainsbury's and Tesco were also on the front foot as people continue to stockpile due to the pandemic.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 4,991.20 -3.84%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 13,084.08 -3.74%
techMARK (TASX) 2,952.53 -3.75%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 210.10p 2.09%
Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 1,083.20p 1.98%
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 188.05p 1.65%
Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 1,044.80p 1.08%
Prudential (PRU) 822.80p 0.24%
British Land Company (BLND) 359.60p -0.39%
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 113.15p -0.57%
Admiral Group (ADM) 2,038.00p -0.73%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 1,299.80p -0.88%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 6,784.00p -1.55%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Polymetal International (POLY) 1,009.50p -13.46%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 86.42p -13.15%
Pearson (PSON) 438.70p -12.19%
Carnival (CCL) 786.20p -11.24%
Centrica (CNA) 38.63p -11.09%
Aveva Group (AVV) 2,992.00p -10.95%
ITV (ITV) 56.54p -10.48%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 339.00p -9.74%
Evraz (EVR) 202.60p -9.71%
Legal & General Group (LGEN) 141.80p -9.71%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Go-Ahead Group (GOG) 722.50p 11.15%
Kingfisher (KGF) 137.15p 8.72%
PPHE Hotel Group Ltd (PPH) 1,030.00p 7.85%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 164.10p 7.11%
Greencore Group (GNC) 143.30p 6.98%
Contour Global (GLO) 175.00p 6.45%
Sanne Group (SNN) 536.00p 6.35%
BMO Commercial Property Trust Limited (BCPT) 45.95p 5.63%
Barr (A.G.) (BAG) 454.50p 4.97%
Genus (GNS) 2,826.00p 4.90%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Virgin Money UK (VMUK) 53.64p -23.48%
IWG (IWG) 130.70p -18.31%
Cineworld Group (CINE) 42.47p -18.11%
4Imprint Group (FOUR) 1,300.00p -16.67%
JPMorgan Indian Investment Trust (JII) 405.00p -15.80%
Ninety One (N91) 133.46p -15.17%
Micro Focus International (MCRO) 358.55p -15.00%
Sirius Real Estate Ltd. (SRE) 48.70p -14.56%
Rank Group (RNK) 96.00p -14.13%
Impax Environmental Markets (IEM) 240.00p -13.67%
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