Get 40% Off
🤯 This Tech Portfolio is up 29% YTD! Join Now to Get April’s Top PicksGet The Picks – Just 99 USD

London stocks rebound from worst day since 1987 crash

Published 13/03/2020, 10:20
Updated 13/03/2020, 10:20
© Reuters. A man wearing a protective face mask walks past the London Stock Exchange Group building in the City of London financial district, whilst British stocks tumble as investors fear that the coronavirus outbreak could stall the global economy, in London

© Reuters. A man wearing a protective face mask walks past the London Stock Exchange Group building in the City of London financial district, whilst British stocks tumble as investors fear that the coronavirus outbreak could stall the global economy, in London

By Shivani Kumaresan and Devik Jain

(Reuters) - London stocks rose on Friday as a recovery in oil prices and moves by policymakers to limit the economic hit from the coronavirus helped them rebound from their worst selloff since the 1987 "Black Monday" crash a day earlier.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 (FTSE) rose 3.2%, but was still on course to post its worst week since the global financial crisis in 2008.

Helping the slight move up on Friday were miners, supermarket chains and oil & gas producers.

"It was perhaps inevitable, given that the FTSE suffered its second worst session ever yesterday and it's probably some people deciding to buy at those lows," said Connor Campbell, analyst at financial spread better Spreadex.

Global equities were hammered on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump shocked investors with a move to restrict travel from Europe, with the ECB's decision to hold off on interest rate cuts adding to panic about a liquidity crunch.

Emergency actions including the Bank of England's 50 basis point interest rate cut and the UK government's 30 billion-pound ($39 billion) stimulus plan have also failed to reassure investors about economic growth.

Traders are now hoping that U.S. lawmakers and the White House will agree on a stimulus package, expected to be announced on Friday.

Travel stocks continued to be the worst hit, with Carnival Corp (L:CCL) tumbling 7.9% to its lowest level since 2009 after its unit, Princess Cruises, said it would suspend the voyages of all its 18 ships for two months.

Shares in holiday company TUI (L:TUIT) dropped 9.5%, while travel group Saga (L:SAGA) fell 3.9% after suspending its cruise operations until early May in response to the coronavirus crisis.

The domestically focussed FTSE mid-cap index (FTMC) was up just 0.5%. Oil producer Premier Oil (L:PMO) surged 56.1% and was on course for its best day in over four years, after eyeing at least $100 million in potential savings on its annual capital spending plans to adjust to the plunge in global crude price.

BP Plc (L:BP) and Royal Dutch Shell Plc (L:RDSa) rose between 6% and 7%, tracking higher oil prices. [O/R]

Miners Rio Tinto (L:RIO), BHP group (L:BHP) and Anglo American (L:AAL) jumped more than 6% and were the top gainers on the main index.

© Reuters. A man wearing a protective face mask walks past the London Stock Exchange Group building in the City of London financial district, whilst British stocks tumble as investors fear that the coronavirus outbreak could stall the global economy, in London

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.