FTSE 100 ends day lower as markets calm on Labour housebuilding plan

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

The FTSE 100 nudged downwards on Tuesday, as a flat day of trading ended with London’s main index in the red.

The blue-chip index slipped 10 points to 8,193 on Monday, a 0.1% fall.

Traders enjoyed some modest mid-day gains after chancellor Rachel Reeves vowed to free up planning restrictions to help hit Labour’s target of building 300,000 houses per year. However, these were cancelled out by the close of trading.

Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell, said: “UK markets took Rachel Reeves’ first speech as the new chancellor in their stride, with little change to the FTSE 100.

“Markets have been very calm since Labour got in, which is what the party would hope to see given the chaos that ensued two years ago when Liz Truss got the keys to Number 10.

“Labour’s narrative continues to point to a stronger backdrop for housebuilders and it’s no wonder the likes of Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon continue to enjoy share price appreciation.

“Missing from Reeves’ speech were the finer details which will have to come at some point.

“When that happens, markets might not be so laid back if it looks like Labour’s plans to boost the economy aren’t as easy to achieve as the headlines imply.”

France’s CAC 40 finished 0.6% down after early gains following Sunday’s election result, which saw a leftwing coalition defeat the far right National Rally party in the polls to set up a hung parliament. Germany’s Dax fell 0.01%.

Stateside, the S&P 500 was down 0.1% as markets were closing in London, while the Dow Jones was down 0.2%.

The pound was up 0.1% at 1.282 US dollars and was up 0.1% at 1.184 euros.

In company news, Danish brewing giant Carlsberg agreed a £3.3 billion deal to buy Robinsons squash maker Britvic.

The UK soft drinks firm, which also makes J2O and Tango, told shareholders on Monday morning it will recommend the latest deal – which is valued at £4.1 billion when debts are taken into account – after rejecting a previous £3.1 billion offer.

Britvic shares jumped 5% on the news.

The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil was down 0.8% to 83.69 US dollars as markets were closing in London.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Beazley, up 23.5p to 684.5p, Smurfit Kappa, up 124p to 3656p, B&M European, up 13p to 456.5p, IAG, up 3.4p to 176.1p, and ConvaTec, up 4.6p to 243.8p.

The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Schroders, down 7.6p to 374p, Centrica, down 2.8p to 139.1p, Fresnillo, down 11p to 582p, Sage Group, down 19p to 1067p, and BP, down 7.55p to 474.65p.