MYSL.L Share News (MYSL)

(Alliance News) - London stocks on Monday started the week on a tepid note ahead of the G20 summit in Japan, where eyes will be on a meeting between the US and China. In a largely quiet day for company news, rating changes boosted Admiral and hindered BT, while MySale slumped 60% as the online retailer put itself up for sale.The FTSE 100 index closed up 9.19 points, or 0.1%, at 7,416.69. The FTSE 250 ended down 24.92 points, or 0.1%, at 19,299.68, and the AIM All-Share closed down 3.56, or 0.4%, at 929.51.The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.4% at 12,572.17, the Cboe UK 250 closed flat at 17,283.68, and the Cboe Small Companies ended down 0.3% at 11,492.72.Stocks in New York were mostly higher at the London equities close, with the DJIA up 0.2%, the S&P 500 index slightly higher, and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.1%. Stocks in London and New York were "blandly positive" at the start of the week, said Connor Campbell at Spreadex, brushing off remarks from US President Donald Trump on the Federal Reserve and the Strait of Hormuz.Trump on Monday launched yet another attack on the Fed, tweeting that the US central bank "doesn't know what it is doing" and has raised rates "far too fast".Trump cited China and Japan among countries that obtain oil via the shipping route, and said they should protect their own ships.And, turning his ire elsewhere, Trump suggested that Washington should stop protecting shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz, where two tankers were allegedly attacked earlier this month.Brent oil was quoted at USD64.25 a barrel at the London equities close Monday, down from USD65.20 late Friday."Oil slipped back today as dealers are worried that strained geopolitical relations will end up eroding demand for the energy," said David Madden at CMC Markets. "Oil has been at the centre of the US-Iran standoff, and tensions are still simmering away. If the US and China don't patch things up at the G20, it is possible that China's demand for oil will dwindle." Focus remains on the G20 summit at the end of this week in the Japanese city of Osaka, where Trump will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping.At the last G20, towards the end of last year in Argentina, the leaders of the world's two largest economies pressed pause on their tit-for-tat escalation, but the lull was broken again just months later when they failed to agree to a full trade deal and resumed protectionist measures.In European equities on Monday, the CAC 40 in Paris ended down 0.1%, while the DAX 30 in Frankfurt shed 0.5%.Weighing on Germany's headline stock index was Daimler, the car maker slipping 3.8% in the wake of a profit warning.The Mercedes-Benz parent said second-quarter earnings will be hit by "governmental proceedings and measures" around diesel vehicles and its earnings are no longer expected to exceed those of 2018.The car maker said the quarter will take a "high three digit million" hit from these proceedings, which relate to a number of issues around diesel.In data, Germany's business sentiment fell again in June to hover at its lowest level since 2014, the latest ifo Institute Business Climate Index showed.The overall Business Climate Index fell to 97.4 points in June from 97.9 points in May, the Munich-based ifo said. This was the lowest reading since November 2014.The euro stood at USD1.1393 at the European equities close Monday, against USD1.1320 at the same time on Friday.Meanwhile, the pound was quoted at USD1.2729 at the London equities close Monday, higher compared to USD1.2694 at the close on Friday.Conservative leadership hopeful Boris Johnson has repeated his determination to deliver Brexit by Halloween, in what will be seen as an attempt to refocus attention away from his private life.The Tory leadership candidate appeared to deliver a retort to his rival to be prime minister as he vowed "we are not going to bottle it" on the EU exit date of October 31. But Jeremy Hunt called on Johnson not to be a "coward" by avoiding a live TV debate with him this week, as he suggested otherwise he would be "slinking through the back door" of Number 10.Sky News invited the leadership rivals to take part in the head-to-head debate on Tuesday night hosted by Kay Burley but said it would be cancelled due to Johnson's decision not to attend.Further, Johnson remains under pressure to explain why police were called to the home he shares with partner Carrie Symonds, but in his column for the Daily Telegraph he attempted to switch attention back to political rather than personal issues.He wrote: "We must leave the EU on Oct 31 come what may. It will honour the referendum result, it will focus the minds of EU negotiators."In London, an upgrade for Admiral pushed the insurer higher, ending up 3.2% after Barclays boosted the stock to Overweight from Underweight. Equipment rental firm Ashtead gained 1.9% after RBC raised its price target on the stock to 2,800p from 2,400p following last week's strong results. Gold miner Fresnillo edged up 0.7% as it tracked the price of the precious metal higher. Gold was quoted at USD1,415.84 an ounce at the London equities close Monday against USD1,395.10 at the close on Friday."Its deja vu for gold as the metal has been boosted by the weakened US dollar. The inverse relationship between gold and the greenback continues to play out, and the commodity is riding the bullish wave," said Madden at CMC Markets. At the bottom of the index was J Sainsbury, down 4.0% while Tesco slipped 2.0% ahead of the latest grocery share figures from Kantar for the 12 weeks to June 16, due out at 0800 BST on Tuesday.Telecommunications firm BT shed 3.3% after Deutsche Bank downgraded the company to Sell from Hold. In addition, the UK Information Commissioner's Office on Monday said it has fined EE, a part of FTSE 100-listed BT, GBP100,000 for sending over 2.5 million direct marketing messages to its customers without consent.FTSE 250-listed Entertainment One rose 5.4% after Berenberg started the Peppa Pig children's show maker with a Buy rating. Elsewhere on the Main Market, MySale slumped 60% as the online retailer put itself on the market. MySale said a strategic review will assess "all types of corporate activity", such as reducing debt, raising further capital and de-listing from AIM. Among these, MySale is considering selling all or part of the company.Any discussions for a takeover will occur under a formal sale process, and MySale is now in an offer period, it said. It has not yet entered any discussions for a possible offer.In the UK corporate calendar on Tuesday, floor coverings retailer Carpetright releases annual results while oilfield services firm Petrofac puts out a trading update. In the economic calendar, minutes from the Bank of Japan's last policy meeting are released at 0050 BST followed by the CBI Distributive Trades Survey at 1100 BST. In the US, the Redbook index is at 1355 BST followed by new home sales at 1500 BST, while US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaks at 1800 BST.London Close is available to subscribers as an email newsletter. Contact info@alliancenews.com