The FTSE once again was in retreat, despite a promising set of commodity stocks and a dip from GBP/USD.
Dropping 0.4%, the UK index slipped to 6,720, further unwinding the sudden and explosive growth seen on Monday.
There were positives for the FTSE. A record $6.5 billion final dividend for Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) sent the miner 1.4% higher, part of a wider commodity rally that only excluded Glencore (LON:GLEN).
And cable found itself falling 0.1%, even with January’s inflation reading beating estimates at 0.7% against the 0.6% forecast.
However, a couple of stocks did a number on the index after the bell. The disposal of around 18 million shares by co-founder Peter Hargreaves sent Hargreaves Lansdown (LON:HRGV) 7% lower, while British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) fell 5.7% as the prospect of mid-single figure earnings growth for 2021 countered a 10% rise in 2020 profit.
The FTSE wasn’t alone on Wednesday. The DAX was left teetering on the precipice of 14,000 as it dropped another 45 points, while the CAC dipped 0.1% as trading got underway.
Stateside the Dow Jones is heading for an unchanged open later this afternoon, keeping it at its 31,500-plus all-time high. The Dow is in the position where a 1 point increase would be enough for a new record; that also means there may be extra scrutiny on the session’s US retail sales readings.
Luckily for the Dow, both the standard and core numbers are expected to improve from December’s downturn, each estimated at 1.1%.
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