LONDON MARKETS: Pound Tumbles As British Factory Output Hits Seven-year Low Ahead Of Brexit Showdown

By Callum Keown

The pound tumbled following dismal British manufacturing data on Monday ahead of a crunch week for Brexit in Parliament.

The internationally-exposed FTSE 100 climbed 1.2% as the pound continued its downward spiral on no-deal Brexit fears and weak factory activity.

Domestic stocks were helped by Europe-wide positivity over U.S.-China trade tensions (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/european-stocks-nudge-higher-despite-fresh-us-china-tariffs-coming-into-force-2019-09-02), with the FTSE 250 edging up 0.4%.

U.S. markets are closed on Monday for the Labor Day holiday.

What's moving the markets?

Sterling continued its descent on Monday, sinking 0.5% to $1.2095 ahead of an important week of Brexit debate in Parliament.

MPs opposing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will bring forward legislation blocking a no-deal Brexit later this week.

Conservative MPs voting against the government could be deselected and thrown out of the party (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/boris-johnson-takes-aim-against-opponents-of-brexit-plans-2019-09-02), according to reports, ramping up the chances of the U.K. leaving the European Union without a withdrawal agreement in place.

British factory activity hit a seven-year low in August, also contributing to the pound's fall.

The IHS Markit/CIPS U.K. Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) dropped to 47.4 from 48 in July and business optimism fell to a record low.

The survey cited economic and political uncertainty, which hit domestic and export orders.

Neil Wilson, an analyst at Markets.com, said: "The manufacturing PMI data is simply shocking.

"It's wrong to pin this all on Brexit--as the report authors make clear, the global economic slowdown is the primary cause of the decline, albeit there was some impact from supply-chain reshoring as businesses seek to mitigate the impact of a no-deal Brexit."

Which stocks are active?

AstraZeneca (AZN.LN) shares jumped 3.1% to all-time highs as the pharmaceutical company said Farxig, its type-2 diabetes drug, reduced the chances of cardiovascular death or worsening heart failure by 26% in a recent trial. Its cardiovascular drug Brilinta also reduced the risk of death and heart attack by 10%.

Gold miner Centamin climbed 1.1% as the company continued its reshuffle, adding two new executive directors to the board. The FTSE 250 company expects a stronger second half of the year from its Sukari gold mine in Egypt.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 02, 2019 07:30 ET (11:30 GMT)

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