(Alliance News) - Stocks in London were mixed at midday on Friday as investors look ahead to the Brexit deal vote in Parliament in the afternoon, while the UK chancellor finally named a new governor of the Bank of England.
The FTSE 100 index was up 16.90 points, or 0.2% at 7,589.97. The mid-cap FTSE 250 index was down 60.96 points, or 0.3% at 21,605.18, and the AIM All-Share index was 0.4% higher at 941.63.
The Cboe UK 100 index was up 0.2% at 12,865.61. The Cboe 250 was 0.2% lower at 19,518.94, and the Cboe Small Companies was down 0.2% at 12,030.27.
In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.5% and the DAX 30 in Frankfurt was up 0.6%.
"UK stocks are treading water as they eagerly await the next step in the Brexit process today. With Theresa May and Boris Johnson previously unable to pass their respective withdrawal agreements, the value of a strong parliamentary majority will become clear today as Johnson's deal looks set to sail through without a hitch. For markets this should provide some degree of certainty and confidence, yet we are instead seeing anxiety remain thanks to Johnson's hard deadline of December 2020 to conclude trade negotiations," said IG Group's Josh Mahony.
In the FTSE 100, AstraZeneca was up 1.5% after the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker said it divested the rights to cancer drugs Arimidex and Casodex in a number of countries to Juvise Pharmaceuticals for up to USD198 million.
At the other end of the large cap index, NMC Health was by far the worst performer, down 21%. The Financial Times on Friday reported the UAE-focused private healthcare firm held talks to raise EUR200 million of off-balance sheet debt to fund new hospitals.
NMC has come under increased scrutiny from analysts, investors and short-sellers this year about its apparent use of off-balance sheet financing, that does not count toward its official debt levels.
NMC shares dropped on Tuesday after short selling firm Muddy Waters Capital said it had shorted the stock, commenting: "We have serious doubts about the company's financial statements, including its asset values, cash balance, reported profit, and reported debt levels."
NMC on Thursday hit back saying the Muddy Waters report was "false" and "misleading".
NMC shares have almost halved in value this week.
Royal Dutch Shell 'A' and 'B' shares were down 1.2% on Friday, after the oil major guided for a potential impairment based on "the macro outlook".
Shell is to book a post-tax impairment of USD1.7 billion to USD2.3 billion for the fourth-quarter of 2019, based on macroeconomic conditions, without giving any further details. The oil giant, London's largest listed company by market capitalisation, guided for a number of other charges which are set to hit fourth-quarter earnings.
In the Upstream unit, Shell will book USD100 million to USD200 million in charges related to well write-offs, plus a USD500 million to USD600 million deferred tax charge. Production in the segment for the last quarter of 2019 is guided between 2.78 million and 2.83 million barrels of oil equivalent per day. Production in all of 2018 was around 2.7 million barrels a day.
Still to come in the UK corporate calendar, Anglo-US cruise line operator Carnival is expected to report annual earnings this afternoon.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3035 at midday, slightly higher than USD1.3015 late Thursday, after UK economic growth in the third-quarter was revised upwards, the Office for National Statistics revealed.
Third-quarter gross domestic product expanded 0.4% from the second quarter, the ONS said, having previously reported a quarter-on-quarter figure of 0.3%. The ONS also reported a higher annual growth figure, with GDP in the third quarter rising by 1.1% compared to the prior estimate of 1.0%. Services remain the main contributor to growth, the ONS said, with construction also contributing positively.
Meanwhile, the head of the UK financial watchdog Andrew Bailey has been chosen as the next governor of the Bank of England, the Treasury announced.
Bailey's tenure at the BoE will begin on March 16 next year and will succeed Canadian Mark Carney, who took up the role in 2013. Carney has since extended his tenure twice, the second time to avoid any disruption during the UK's talks to leave the EU.
Bailey has been head of the Financial Conduct Authority since July 2016. Before that, he was chief executive of the Prudential Regulation Authority.
As part of his general election pledge to have Brexit "decided" by Christmas, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will bring back the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill for its second reading in the House of Commons on Friday.
After the Conservatives won a landslide at the general election and secured an 80-seat majority last week, the vote in the afternoon is expected to pass without a hitch for the government and lay the ground for a January exit from the EU.
The euro stood at USD1.1094 at midday, down from USD1.1111 late Thursday. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY109.35, firm from JPY109.28 late Thursday.
Stocks in New York were set for a subdued open on Friday. All three major US stock indices set fresh highs on Thursday amid a cooling of US-China trade tensions and a new continental trade agreement among the US, Canada and Mexico advancing in Congress.
The DJIA was called called up 0.1%, the S&P 500 index called flat and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.1%.
Ahead in the economic events calendar, there are US third-quarter GDP figures at 1330 GMT.
Brent oil was quoted at USD66.22 a barrel at the equities close, soft against USD66.50 late Thursday.
Gold was quoted at USD1,477.30 an ounce at the London equities close, little changed USD1,476.20 late Thursday.
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com
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