Dec 24 (Reuters) – The FTSE 100 edged lower on Wednesday, with homebuilder gains countered by declines in healthcare amid a truncated Christmas Eve session.
The UK’s blue-chip FTSE 100 was down 0.1% at 0936 GMT, trading sideways since it hit a five-week high last week following the Bank of England’s 25-basis-point interest rate cut.
The domestically focussed midcap FTSE 250 index was up 0.07% and eyed its second consecutive week of gains.
Trading volumes are expected to remain thin heading into the holidays, as many markets are either shut or operating on reduced hours on Christmas Eve.
The stock market in London will shut at 1230 GMT on Wednesday and remain closed on Thursday and Friday for Christmas and Boxing Day, respectively.
The homebuilders Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon were up 0.5% each, while healthcare stocks fell 0.5%, weighed down by AstraZeneca and Genus falling 0.7% and 0.1%, respectively.
Oil major BP agreed to sell a 65% stake in its Castrol lubricants business to U.S. investment firm Stonepeak for about $6 billion, a significant step in the oil major’s $20 billion divestment plan aimed at cutting debt and boosting returns. Its shares were trading flat.
Miners and financial stocks, along with defence stocks, were the biggest drivers of the FTSE 100’s gains this year, which is up 20.7% year-to-date.
Meanwhile, pan-European STOXX 600 and Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index have gained about 16% each so far.
(Reporting by Tharuniyaa Lakshmi in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)
