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(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Monday amid tentative steps to ease lockdown measures in the UK; however airlines were in the red amid government plans to require passengers arriving in Britain to quarantine for a fortnight.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will provide more detailed plans to gradually ease the coronavirus lockdown when the government publishes its official guidance amid widespread calls for clarity. Johnson will face members of Parliament on Monday after offering his "first sketch of a road map" for restarting the economy and social lives in England.
Berenberg's Kallum Pickering said: "Reflecting the comparatively high number of actives virus cases and, in turn, greater risk of a second spike in infections, the first steps to re-open England are smaller than the initial steps taken by Germany on 20 April or those taking effect in France. Johnson announced that people, for whom remote working is not possible, should now try to return to work - avoiding public transport where possible.
"Given the continued restrictions on economic activities such as retail, tourism and entertainment, this will have an uneven effect across sectors. It will mostly benefit the construction and production industries."
The large-cap FTSE 100 index was down 52.08 points, or 0.9%, at 5,988.05 early Monday. The mid-cap FTSE 250 index was up 184.12 points, or 1.1%, at 16,432.06. The AIM All-Share index was up 0.9% at 822.85. The London market was closed on Friday for the VE Day celebrations.
The Cboe UK 100 index was up 0.6% at 10,100.20. The Cboe 250 was up 0.7% at 13,979.25 and the Cboe Small Companies was up 0.4% at 9,029.68.
In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.1%, while the DAX 30 in Frankfurt was up 0.5% early Monday. The two indices had closed up 1.1% and 1.4%, respectively, on Friday while the UK was on holiday.
CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson said: "It is becoming increasingly apparent that financial markets appear to be taking their cues from expectations of a big economic hit this year, being quickly followed by a similarly decisive rebound in 2021, with anticipation of lockdowns being eased, helping add fuel to the fire of optimism.
"It seems fairly obvious that social distancing is likely to be with us for quite some time which means people will be travelling a lot less, as well as going out a lot less."
In the FTSE 100, Carnival was up 2.3% after HSBC raised the downtrodden cruise operator stock to Buy from Hold. Shares remain down 75% so far in 2020.
At the other end of the large-cap index, airlines easyJet and British Airways parent International Consolidated Airlines Group were down 4.2% and 2.1% respectively following the announcement by the government on Sunday of a planned 14-day quarantine for UK arrivals.
The move heaps further pressure on a fragile aviation sector, and a consumer group has warned an imposed quarantine on people flying into the UK will add to the confusion of Britons trying to figure out future travel plans.
Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said: "The situation is chaotic: the guidance issued by the government against travelling abroad is indefinite, and yet some airlines and travel companies are selling flights and holidays due to depart within the next few weeks which carry no warning that they are unlikely to go ahead as planned.
"The government must also urgently produce a plan to support the travel industry through this crisis, so carriers and holiday companies can comply with the law and refund consumers without fear of going bust."
Long-haul carrier Virgin Atlantic Airways is seeking to raise new funds from private investors in a bid to avoid collapse, the Times newspaper reported.
Virgin Atlantic is set to discuss potential financing options with several private sector investors, including Cerberus Capital Management, Centerbridge Partners, Apollo Global Management and Greybull Capital. According to the newspaper, the company's financing talks include an equity stake sale against potential commercial loans or other forms of credit.
The airline, which is majority-owned by Richard Branson's Virgin Group, at the same time is seeking a GBP500 million rescue package from the UK government.
Also in the FTSE 100, Next was down 0.6% after Goldman Sachs cut the clothing retailer to Neutral from Buy.
In the FTSE 250, Hammerson was the worst performer, down 5.7% after Morgan Stanley downgraded the shopping centre operator to Underweight from Equal Weight.
Victrex was down 0.5% after the speciality chemical company deferred its interim dividend and said the coronavirus pandemic was beginning to hit demand in Europe and the US.
The euro was quoted at USD1.0842, up from USD1.0790. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY106.95, up from JPY106.48.
Brent oil was trading at USD30.62 a barrel Monday morning, slightly lower than USD30.83 late Thursday in London. Gold was quoted at USD1,706.42 an ounce, firm from USD1,700.80.
The Japanese Nikkei 225 index closed up 1.1% on Monday. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed down 0.1%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong is up 1.5%.
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com
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