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Reckitt, airlines rattle FTSE

Published 24/07/2017, 17:27
Updated 24/07/2017, 17:27
© Reuters. People walk through the lobby of the London Stock Exchange in London

© Reuters. People walk through the lobby of the London Stock Exchange in London

By Kit Rees

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's top share index fell on Monday as heavyweight Reckitt Benckiser (L:RB) dropped following its results and as airlines were hit by price war worries.

Britain's blue-chip FTSE 100 (FTSE) index ended down 1 percent at 7,377.7 points.

Consumer goods company Reckitt Benckiser fell 3.3 percent, the biggest FTSE loser, after second-quarter sales fell 2 percent following last month's cyber attack, which disrupted its operations.

"We consider the quality of these results disappointing for a company like RB, and expect the stock to underperform today particularly given management's commentary around 2017 outlook," analysts at UBS said in a note.

Airlines also saw losses, with budget carrier easyJet (L:EZJ) down 2.8 percent and British Airway's operator IAG (L:ICAG) falling 0.8 percent after Irish peer Ryanair (I:RYA) warned rivals that it may cut its late summer fares by as much as 9 percent compared with last year.

Blue chip risers were dominated by more defensive stocks, with pharma firm Shire (L:SHP) making modest gains.

Outside of the blue chips, M&A was in focus on the mid-cap (FTMC) index after B&M European Value Retail (L:BMEB) jumped 4.8 percent on the back of a media report that Wal-Mart's (N:WMT) Asda is considering a 4.4 billion pound ($5.7 billion) bid to take over the discount retailer.

The British mid cap (FTMC) index fell 0.7 percent, led lower by a 20 percent slump in Acacia Mining's (L:ACAA) shares following a spate of broker cuts in light of the gold miner's continuing troubles stemming from Tanzania's export ban.

© Reuters. People walk through the lobby of the London Stock Exchange in London

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