AGL 38.25 Decreased By ▼ -1.33 (-3.36%)
AIRLINK 126.50 Decreased By ▼ -4.72 (-3.6%)
BOP 6.85 Increased By ▲ 0.04 (0.59%)
CNERGY 4.46 Decreased By ▼ -0.25 (-5.31%)
DCL 8.02 Decreased By ▼ -0.42 (-4.98%)
DFML 38.01 Decreased By ▼ -3.46 (-8.34%)
DGKC 77.81 Decreased By ▼ -4.28 (-5.21%)
FCCL 31.01 Decreased By ▼ -2.09 (-6.31%)
FFBL 69.10 Decreased By ▼ -3.77 (-5.17%)
FFL 11.89 Decreased By ▼ -0.37 (-3.02%)
HUBC 107.30 Decreased By ▼ -3.44 (-3.11%)
HUMNL 13.60 Decreased By ▼ -0.91 (-6.27%)
KEL 4.87 Decreased By ▼ -0.32 (-6.17%)
KOSM 7.38 Decreased By ▼ -0.23 (-3.02%)
MLCF 37.10 Decreased By ▼ -1.80 (-4.63%)
NBP 67.40 Increased By ▲ 3.39 (5.3%)
OGDC 185.91 Decreased By ▼ -6.91 (-3.58%)
PAEL 24.70 Decreased By ▼ -0.98 (-3.82%)
PIBTL 7.29 Decreased By ▼ -0.05 (-0.68%)
PPL 146.00 Decreased By ▼ -8.07 (-5.24%)
PRL 24.79 Decreased By ▼ -1.04 (-4.03%)
PTC 16.50 Decreased By ▼ -1.31 (-7.36%)
SEARL 78.50 Decreased By ▼ -3.80 (-4.62%)
TELE 7.33 Decreased By ▼ -0.43 (-5.54%)
TOMCL 32.30 Decreased By ▼ -1.16 (-3.47%)
TPLP 8.20 Decreased By ▼ -0.29 (-3.42%)
TREET 16.40 Decreased By ▼ -0.22 (-1.32%)
TRG 55.73 Decreased By ▼ -1.67 (-2.91%)
UNITY 27.60 Increased By ▲ 0.09 (0.33%)
WTL 1.32 Decreased By ▼ -0.05 (-3.65%)
BR100 10,291 Decreased By -213.5 (-2.03%)
BR30 30,201 Decreased By -1025.6 (-3.28%)
KSE100 95,859 Decreased By -2220.7 (-2.26%)
KSE30 29,839 Decreased By -719.8 (-2.36%)

Britain's top share index slipped to a three-week low on Wednesday as a slowing US economy and caution before the end of a Federal Reserve policy meeting led some investors to take profits from recent highs. The US reported its economy grew in the first quarter at just a 0.2 percent annual rate, well below expectations for 1 percent growth and the fourth quarter's 2.2 percent growth.
"The disappointing GDP headline seems to be the pretext used by equity investors to take some profits," said Tristan Abet, cross-asset strategist at Louis Capital Markets. "The malaise is well known: equity indices have gone well ahead of the reality. A pull-back is simply a 'normal event'." Investors also were waiting for a statement from the Fed, due after the UK market closes. The US central bank has kept rates near zero since late 2008 to spur recovery from the financial crisis.
"Investors are cautious before the outcome of the Fed's policy meeting and will scrutinise the Fed statement for hints about the timing of the first rate hike in the United States," said Robert Parkes, equity strategist at HSBC Global Research. The FTSE 100 index closed 1.2 percent lower at 6,946.28 points after falling to 6,945.56, the lowest since early April and further away from Monday's record high of 7,122.74 points.
The index is still up around 6 percent so far this year, but it has underperformed regional peers such as Germany's DAX, up nearly 20 percent this year, amid certainty about the result of a UK election on May 7. Traders said the UK stock market was likely to stay choppy until the election, when a drop in British consumer confidence may work against Prime Minister David Cameron.
Among top sectoral decliners, the UK mining index fell 1 percent. Antofagasta dropped 2.2 percent after cutting its copper output forecast. Barclays dropped 1.7 percent after setting aside another 800 million pounds ($1.2 billion) to cover potential settlements for foreign exchange manipulation. Shares in British American Tobacco, the world's second-largest cigarette maker, fell 2.2 percent after reporting a drop in revenue for the first quarter. It was hurt by the strength of the pound and a continued decline in the number of people who smoke. Next, Britain's second-biggest clothing retailer, rose 1.7 percent as it maintained its profit forecast after posting first-quarter sales slightly ahead of its own guidance.

Copyright Reuters, 2015

Comments

Comments are closed.