Footsie drops amid trio of trading woes

Market report Hannah Burley

Investor concerns over Britain’s EU departure, Italy’s budget issues and Us-china trade tensions drove markets lower.

The FTSE 100 ended the day down 19.15 points lower at 7,016.85.

David Madden, market analyst at CMC Markets, said: “Stock markets are in the red following yesterday’s bullish move. Fears regarding Us-china trade, Italy’s budget and Brexit all play into the mix.

“The chances of a ‘no-deal’ Brexit have increased as there is speculation that the [EU withdrawal] deal will be voted down, and that is weighing on the pound.”

Sterling was down over 0.5 per cent versus the dollar at $1.273 and shed 0.2 per cent against the euro to finish the session at €1.128.

In corporate news, Topps Tiles shares fell 1p to 65p after the tile retailer said it is stockpiling key products ahead of Brexit as it prepares for possible supply disruption.

Pets at Home, which also revealed action to stockpile pet food and products worth millions of pounds ahead of Brexit, saw shares dip 1.3p to 113.3p after it announced 30 vet practices are set for possible closure.

Shares in Quiz remained flat although the Glasgow-based fashion retailer unveiled a solid hike in half-year sales and profits in the face of “challenging” market conditions and a hit from the administration of House of Fraser.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 included Coca-cola, up 104p to 2,373p, and Ocado ,up 26.20p to 816p. The biggest fallers included

Johnson Matthey, down 127p to 2,950p, and

GVC Holdings, down 30.20p to 778.5p.