Footsie ends in the red amid trade deal fears

The market failed to keep up the optimism it showed late last week as China signalled it might take longer than hoped to wrap up the first part of a trade deal with the US.

David Madden, an analyst at CMC Markets, said that traders had been caught off guard by the signalling from China.

“The update from Beijing has resurfaced some trade concerns, so dealers are trimming their positions in equities,” he said.

The FTSE 100 closed down 33.63 points to end the day on 7,213.45. Meanwhile the FTSE 250 dropped 111.81 points to 19,929.90.

Sterling was down 0.25 per cent against the dollar to $1.2588. The currency settled after a 4 per cent rise late last week on news that Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Irish taoiseach Leo Varadkar had found common ground on Brexit.

But the news was not as positive over the weekend, said Connor Campbell, an analyst at Spreadex.

“Given the lack of progress over the weekend – the bloc said Boris Johnson needs to move ‘further and faster’ if he is to secure a deal in time – and the sheer exuberance seen across Thursday and Friday, it wouldn’t have been a surprise to see sterling suffer a severe comedown,” he said.

Superdry’s shares closed up 1.5 per cent at 439.2p, with founder Julian Dunkerton having been appointed chief executive on a permanent basis as his control is extended for a further 18 months.

Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct was also up, by 4 per cent to 309.8p, after calling for a wide-ranging investigation into the sportswear industry.