LONDON MARKETS: FTSE 100 Drops As Pearson, Diageo Shares Throttled

By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch

Los Angeles schools ditching Apple-Pearson tech package

U.K. stocks retreated from a record high Thursday, with Pearson PLC shares yanked lower on a refund demand related to technology partner Apple Inc.

The FTSE 100 fell 0.5% to 7,060.45, slipping from Wednesday's record close at 7,096.78. The decline was in step with a selloff in the broader European market that left the Stoxx Europe 600 also falling away from a record high.

Pearson PLC shares ended at the bottom of the British blue-chip benchmark, suffering its worst loss since February 2014, according to FactSet data. The stock dropped 4% following a report (http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-ipad-curriculum-refund-20150415-story.html)that the Los Angeles Unified School District is canceling a program under which it purchased Apple (AAPL) iPads featuring curriculum from Pearson.

Stock in Diageo also ended in the red Thursday, falling 3.6% after the Smirnoff vodka and Johnnie Walker Scotch whisky maker said net sales fell 0.3% (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/diageo-9-month-organic-sales-fall-2015-04-16) in the nine months ended March 31.

On the bight side, Unilever PLC shares were perched at the top of FTSE 100 as they rose 2.6%. Sales at the consumer-products heavyweight jumped 12% in the first quarter (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/unilever-sales-lifted-by-favorable-forex-movements-2015-04-16). Underlying sales grew 2.8%.

SABMiller rose 1.4%, after the brewer posted growth in revenue of 6% in the fourth quarter. But the maker of Fosters, Miller and Peroni said depreciation of key currencies against the dollar (GBPUSD) also dented results.

In the energy group, shares of Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB) gained 1.1%, and BG Group PLC picked up 0.3%, withstanding losses for energy prices (CLK5) as U.S. oil futures came off their highest level this year (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-prices-stay-supported-brent-trades-above-60barrel-2015-04-16-11031855).

But BP PLC slipped 0.5%. The oil major's chief executive, Bob Dudley, warned that oil prices (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bp-ceo-warns-oil-could-stay-low-for-few-years-2015-04-16) could stay low for several years.

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