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London open: Stocks in the red as oil declines, ex-divs weigh
Equity markets in London were on the back foot in early trade amid weaker oil prices, as a number of ex-dividend stocks weighed on the index.
At 0830 BST, London’s FTSE 100 index was down 0.8% to 6,813.47.
At the same time, oil prices slipped after data from the US Energy Information Administration on Wednesday showed a build in crude inventories and following record Saudi Arabian production. West Texas Intermediate was down 0.6% to $41.46 a barrel and Brent crude was off 0.4% at $43.88.
Andy McLevey, head of dealing at stockbroker Interactive Investor, said: “The FTSE 100 index has opened in the red this morning as a number of stocks go ex-dividend and the latest drop in the price of oil drags on energy stocks.
“We may see some profit taking following recent gains but with a dearth of major economic releases the to-ing and fro-ing of late looks set to continue as investors look to corporate earnings as the key driver.”
In corporate news, Tui Group pushed higher after it said revenues shrank in the third quarter but the travel group was still confident of hitting its full year targets.
European soft drink bottler Coca-Cola HBC rallied after saying first-half net sales revenue grew 2.4%.
Legal & General Group edged down after agreeing the sale of its Cofunds investment platform to Aegon for £140m.
Miner and commodity trader Glencore nudged a touch lower after it reported a drop in production in the first half – with the exception of nickel and agricultural products – and lifted its full-year copper guidance.
Old Mutual was under pressure as its first-half results fell short of expectations.
Poundland was in the red after Steinhoff International improved the terms of its offer for the discount retailer, offering 227p in cash per share, made up of 225p and a 2p dividend.
The FTSE was also weighed down by the fact that a number of stocks went ex-dividend on Thursday, including the likes of Ashtead, AstraZeneca, Barclays, Berkeley Group, BT, GlaxoSmithKline, Lloyds, Rio Tinto and Standard Chartered, among others.
There are no major UK data releases due but in the US, initial jobless claims are at 1330 BST.
