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* Britain's novel coronavirus cases surge
* UK retail sales rise in August
* Man Group gains on share buyback program
* Online supermarket Ocado best weekly performing blue-chip
(Adds details, updates to market close)
By Shashank Nayar and Ambar Warrick
Sept 18 (Reuters) - Consumer stocks weighed down London's
mid-cap index on Friday after a rise in new coronavirus cases
stoked fears of new lockdown measures, and the blue-chip index
was bogged down by major energy stocks.
The FTSE 250 index shed 1% as the spectre of a
no-deal Brexit also loomed over markets, and the FTSE 100
fell 0.7%. Both indexes marked lacklustre moves for the
week.
Online supermarket Ocado Group was the best weekly
performing bluechip stock. Security firm G4S Plc was the
best performing mid-cap.
Britain's health minister said the novel coronavirus was
accelerating, with hospital admissions doubling every eight
days, but declined to say whether another national lockdown
would be imposed next month.
"There is a glass half-empty, half-full situation right
now," said Roland Kaloyan, strategist at SocGen.
"On one end, we are seeing headline numbers like retail
sales improve, while on the other end the rise in coronavirus
cases and the uncertainty around Brexit are acting as an
overhang, leading to some risk aversion in markets."
Data on Friday showed British shoppers continued to increase
spending last month, particularly online.
But with new curbs on social activity, most other consumer
sectors, especially the restaurant business, are expected to
remain under pressure as infections spread.
A raft of stimulus and optimism around a post-pandemic
recovery have helped the FTSE 100 bounce back from a
coronavirus-induced slump in March, but the index has lagged its
U.S. and European peers, with the domestic economy heading
towards its worst recession in 300 years.
Banks were among the worst performing FTSE
sector this week after the Bank of England flagged a possible
shift to negative rates.
In company news, British hedge fund manager Man Group
rose 4.1% after it said it would start a share buyback
programme of up to $100 million, with around 66 million shares
to be acquired.
(Reporting by Shashank Nayar in Bengaluru; Editing by
Subhranshu Sahu, Uttaresh.V and Timothy Heritage)
