UK mid-cap stocks suffered their worst day in 3 months on Monday as stricter curbs to fight a fast-spreading new strain of the coronavirus prompted travel bans, worries about food shortages and further economic pain. The domestically focused FTSE 250 .FTMC fell 2% as the latest development in the pandemic added to investors worries, with no Brexit trade deal in sight and just 10 days to go until a transition period expires. contraction was already looking likely in the fourth quarter and this could now extend into the new year if the lockdown continues, said Rupert Thompson, chief investment officer at Kingswood. Several nations closed their borders to Britain, sending the blue-chip FTSE 100 .FTSE down about 1.7% despite a sharp slide in the pound. GBP/ BP.L and Royal Dutch Shell RDSa.L weighed the most on the index with Shell RDSa.L also taking a hit after it said it would write down the value of its oil and gas assets by $3.5 billion to $4.5 billion. O/R
By Reuters Staff
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FILE PHOTO: A passenger lowers his mask for identification at the Gatwick Airport, as travel restrictions are eased following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Gatwick, Britain July 10, 2020. REUTERS/Toby Melville
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain’s competition regulator said on Wednesday it would investigate whether airlines had breached consumers’ legal rights by failing to offer cash refunds for flights they could not legally take during a COVID-19 lockdown.
The regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority, said the new inquiry was part of its ongoing work in relation to holiday refunds during the pandemic.
COVID-19 has forced the cancellation of thousands of flights. Consumer groups have accused the airlines of being slow to issue refunds and misleading passengers into accepting flight vouchers instead of cash, flouting rules.
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(Reuters) - European shares fell on Friday as doubts over a post-Brexit trade deal and a stimulus package in the United States capped gains at the end of a solid week.
FILE PHOTO: The German share price index DAX graph is pictured at the stock exchange in Frankfurt, Germany, December 16, 2020. REUTERS/Staff/File Photo
The pan-European STOXX 600 index broke a four-day rally to end 0.4% lower, reversing gains that followed a surprise rise in German business morale in December.
The German DAX gave up gains of as much as 0.8% to end in the red. The Ifo institute’s upbeat data came even as Europe’s biggest economy went into a strict lockdown to contain a second wave of coronavirus infections.
Europe: Stocks break four-day rally on Brexit trade talks, US stimulus businesstimes.com.sg - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from businesstimes.com.sg Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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European shares inched lower on Friday as doubts over a post-Brexit trade deal and fresh U.S.-China tensions capped gains at the end of a solid week.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index slipped 0.2% by 0808 GMT, easing from a near 10-month high hit in the previous session, while the German DAX and France’s CAC 40 also lost about 0.2% each.
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Losses in UK’s exporter-heavy index were limited by a slide in the pound after Britain and European Union negotiators warned that they remained far apart on a number of issues and that it was becoming more likely they would fail to reach an agreement.