FTSE 100 ends day down as HSBC weighs

London’s top flight ended in negative territory yesterday as disappointing results from HSBC helped drag the index into the red.

The FTSE 100 closed down 40.3 points, or 0.56%, at 7,179.17.

David Madden, market analyst at CMC, also pointed to lingering trade tensions that are weighing on equity markets.

“The FTSE 100 is in the red this afternoon as a lack of positive news has encouraged some traders to take money off the table.

“The disappointing results from big hitters HSBC and BHP Billiton have weighed on the British equity benchmark.

“There are some concerns that President Trump could trigger a trade war with the EU in relation to the importation of vehicles and auto parts, so some investors are cautious.”

HSBC propped up the bluechip index, closing down 26.6p, or 4%, at 637.1p.

In currencies, the pound was trading up 1% versus the US dollar at 1.304 at the London market close. Against the euro, sterling was up 0.7% at 1.150.

In Europe, German’s Dax closed up 0.04% while France’s Cac 40 fell 0.3%.

A barrel of Brent crude was trading at 65 US dollars, a fall of 0.8%.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Micro Focus up 63.5p at 1,812p, Tui up 26.8p at 852.8p, Coca Cola HBC up 69p at 2,633p, and Carnival up 85p at 4,373p.

The biggest fallers were HSBC down 26.6p at 637.1p, Rentokil down 9.8p at 344.1p, BAE Systems down 13.2p at 511.6p, and GVC down 15p at 615p.