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* Deliveroo fourth-quarter order growth jumps
* Premier Foods top midcap gainer on strong profit outlook
* Unilever abandons plan to buy GSK's healthcare arm
* FTSE 100 down 0.1%, FTSE 250 adds 0.3%
(Updates to close)
By Shashank Nayar
Jan 20 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 slipped on Thursday on
weakness in oil stocks and GlaxoSmithKline, while food
delivery platform Deliveroo jumped on order growth hitting the
top of its outlook range.
The blue-chip index ended 0.1% lower, weighed down
by oil majors Royal Dutch Shell and BP as they
tracked weaker crude oil prices.
GlaxoSmithKline fell 1.8% and was among the biggest loser on
the FTSE 100 after consumer goods giant Unilever late
on Wednesday effectively ended its pursuit of a business that
the pharmaceuticals company plans to spin off later this year.
However, the blue-chip index is set to gain for the fifth
consecutive week, helped by strength in commodity-linked shares
and banking stocks, significantly outperforming the pan-European
STOXX 600.
Food delivery company Deliveroo rose 1.4% on strong
fourth-quarter order value growth, resulting in it hitting the
top of its outlook range for the year.
"The effective lockdown conditions created by Omicron
undoubtedly helped (Deliveroo), but with restrictions starting
to be lifted, this supportive trend is rapidly moving into the
rear-view mirror," Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell,
said.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday announced
the end of COVID-19 measures including mandatory face masks in
England.
The domestically focussed mid-cap index rose 0.3%
Primark owner Associated British Foods dropped 4.2%
after it said the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant
dented shopper numbers in December.
Premier Foods was among the top midcap gainer, up
7.8%, and said it expects full-year profits above market
expectations, as its trademark Mr Kipling brand delivered its
best-ever Christmas sales.
(Reporting by Shashank Nayar and Amal S in Bengaluru; Editing
by Shounak Dasgupta and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
