FTSE 100 movers: Defensives gain, cyclicals tumble as stocks in freefall
London's FTSE 100 was down a whopping 4.4% at 8,105.43 in afternoon trade on Friday, with markets in freefall after China announced retaliatory tariffs on the US.
In a sea of red, defensive stocks were in the black, with utilities United Utilities, National Grid, SSE and Severn Trent all up, while Imperial Brands and British American Tobacco also gained.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said "defensive stocks continued to buck the selloff".
"You can see where people's priorities lie - keeping the lights on, having a smoke and a pint of Guinness are simple pleasures when the world is falling apart," he said.
Unsurprisingly, cyclical stocks - which are linked to the overall performance of the economy - were under the cosh. Miners Glencore, Antofagasta and Anglo American fell sharply, while banks Barclays and NatWest also tumbled.
FTSE 100 - Risers
United Utilities Group (UU.) 1,092.00p 1.96%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 375.80p 1.29%
National Grid (NG.) 1,064.50p 1.09%
SSE (SSE) 1,671.00p 1.09%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,716.00p 0.85%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,924.00p 0.83%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 240.40p 0.42%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,990.00p 0.35%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,191.00p 0.28%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,788.00p 0.08%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Glencore (GLEN) 233.10p -10.62%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 670.80p -10.08%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 407.90p -9.58%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,427.50p -8.61%
Barclays (BARC) 247.95p -8.47%
NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 417.20p -7.80%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,851.40p -7.61%
St James's Place (STJ) 825.60p -7.17%
IMI (IMI) 1,683.00p -7.02%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 152.50p -7.01%
Disclaimer & Declaration of Interest
The information, investment views and recommendations in this article are provided for general information purposes only. Nothing in this article should be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any financial product relating to any companies under discussion or to engage in or refrain from doing so or engaging in any other transaction. Any opinions or comments are made to the best of the knowledge and belief of the writer but no responsibility is accepted for actions based on such opinions or comments. Vox Markets may receive payment from companies mentioned for enhanced profiling or publication presence. The writer may or may not hold investments in the companies under discussion.