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* FTSE 100 gains 1%, FTSE 250 down 1%
* Rolls Royce, Meggitt fall to bottom of FTSE 100
* easyJet tumbles on grounding its fleet, furloughing
employees
* REIT Hammerson drags on midcap index
(Updates to close)
By Sruthi Shankar and Devik Jain
March 30 (Reuters) - The UK's exporter-heavy FTSE 100 closed
higher on Monday, helped by a jump in AstraZeneca's shares and a
weaker pound, but the prospect of a prolonged coronavirus-led
shutdown in Britain weighed on midcap shares.
The FTSE 100 index rose 1%, recovering from early
losses as AstraZeneca gained 4.4% after U.S. regulators
approved its treatment against an aggressive type of lung cancer
in previously untreated patients.
A weaker pound following a Fitch's cut to Britain's
sovereign debt rating also helped the big dollar earners on the
index.
However, the general mood was that of caution as investors
were left wondering if the massive steps taken by policymakers
over the pat weeks will be enough to shield global growth as
many economists warn of a sharp economic slump.
The FTSE midcap index fell 1%, with shopping centre
operator Hammerson sliding 22% to the bottom after it
suspended its final dividend and said the outbreak would have a
material impact on its earnings.
Adding to woes for domestic businesses, a senior medical
officer said on Sunday some lockdown measures in Britain could
last months and only be gradually lifted.
"I think the markets want to have hope, but the reality is
there is still more pain to come in the short-term," said Louise
Kernohan, investment director for UK Equities at Aberdeen
Standard Investments.
The U.S. government passed a $2 trillion coronavirus relief
bill last week, while the UK government's commitment to pay 80%
of the wages of workers who are temporarily laid off, and
monetary policy easing by major central banks, had sparked a
bounce in global stocks last week.
Still, the FTSE 100 is still headed for its worst month in
more than three decades and is down about 28% since hitting a
peak in January.
Shares in aerospace suppliers Rolls-Royce, Meggitt
and Senior fell between 12% and 14% after
another bearish call from JPMorgan.
The U.S. bank, which assumes a 38% drop in global air
traffic in 2020, cut earnings estimates for the sector, and
expects credit rating firms including the S&P to downgrade
Rolls-Royce to non-investment grade.
Travel stocks have taken a beating, as the fast-spreading
coronavirus triggered lockdowns globally, forcing airlines, and
cruise and travel operators to scramble for cash to survive.
The wider travel and leisure index fell 1.6%,
with low-cost airline easyJet sliding 7.2% after
revealing it had grounded its entire fleet and furloughed cabin
crew for two months under a government job retention scheme.
"Within each sector, there will be relative winners and
relative losers. The investors' job now is to choose the ones
that will survive and hopefully will come out stronger after
this - based on liquidity and balance sheet," said Aberdeen's
Kernohan.
Battered shares in BP and Royal Dutch Shell
gained even as Brent crude plunged to its cheapest in 18 years
on fears about the economic hit from the pandemic as well as a
price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia.
(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar and Devik Jain in Bengaluru;
Editing by Bernard Orr and Giles Elgood)
