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LONDON (Alliance News) - Stocks in London ended mixed on Wednesday, with gains from housebuilders offset by falls from Pearson, Reckitt Benckiser and commodity stocks in the FTSE 100. Focus will be on the historic no-confidence vote later in the evening amid domestic political chaos at Westminster. The FTSE 100 index closed down 32.34 points, or 0.5%, at 6,862.68 on Tuesday.The FTSE 250 ended up 56.96 points, or 0.3%, at 18,486.73, and the AIM All-Share closed up 4.94 points, or 0.6%, at 905.22.The Cboe UK 100 ended down 0.6% at 11,641.21, the Cboe UK 250 closed up 0.2% at 16,520.66, but the Cboe Small Companies ended down 0.1% at 11,094.49.In Paris the CAC 40 ended up 0.5%, while the DAX 30 in Frankfurt ended up 0.4%. "For the FTSE 100, stubborn losses in its commodity sector - with the likes of BP, Shell and Rio Tinto all feeling edgy about the state of the Chinese economy - meant that the UK index was stuck in the red," said Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell. Heavyweight oil stocks Royal Dutch Shell 'A', Shell 'B' and BP closed down 1.5%, 1.9% and 1.3% respectively, while miners Rio Tinto and BHP Group ended down 0.6% and 1.0% respectively. In the FTSE 100, housebuilders ended in the green following a well-received trading update from peer Bovis Homes.Persimmon ended as the best blue chip performer up 5.5%, Taylor Wimpey was just behind, up 5.0% and Barratt Developments closed 4.1% higher.Bovis Homes closed up 2.9% after the FTSE 250-listed housebuilder said it expects to post a record year of profit and that it saw "encouraging" early signs for trading in 2019.The Kent-headquartered firm said it is set to see profits for 2018 that are slightly ahead of market expectations after a "significant step-up" in operating margins.Bovis also expects to increase the payout for shareholders and intends to post a final dividend of 38p a share, up from 32.5p the prior year.The company said the UK housing market "remains strong with customer demand for new homes supported by attractive mortgage finance and government initiatives", in particular the Help to Buy scheme."As a no deal Brexit recedes further into the background, housebuilders are looking like a more attractive investment - the combination of relatively undemanding valuations plus healthy dividends being too much for some to pass up," said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.At the other end of the large cap index, Pearson ended as the worst performer, down 6.6% after the education publisher said pressures in its US higher education business will continue in 2019, leading to flat revenue or a fall of up to 5%.In addition, Pearson expects 2018 adjusted operating profit to come in between GBP540 million and GBP545 million, in line with its previous guidance range of GBP520 million to GBP560 million.Reckitt Benckiser closed down 4.4% after the household goods maker said Chief Executive Rakesh Kapoor intends to retire from his role by the end of 2019. Reckitt, which Nurofen painkillers, cleaning product Dettol and baby formula Enfamil, said it has now started a formal process to appoint Kapoor's successor, and will be considering both internal and external candidates. Kapoor has spent more than eight years at the helm and 32 years at the company.The pound was higher, quoted at USD1.2867 at the London equities close against USD1.2761 at the close Tuesday, as UK Prime Minister Theresa May faces a no-confidence vote following the crushing defeat of her Brexit deal on Tuesday. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn tabled a no-confidence motion, with the vote set to take place at 1900 GMT. Corbyn told May she was obliged by parliamentary convention to call an election after a series of setbacks culminating in a record defeat in parliament for a UK government, after lawmakers voted by 432 to 202 against her deal.The prime minster appeared upbeat despite the defeat, rejecting the call for an election and telling parliament she would seek consensus on Brexit in talks with lawmakers from other parties if she wins the confidence vote.In the event May loses, the government would fall and there would be a two week period in which a new government can be formed. However, May is likely to win the confidence vote, with no public dissent among the 317 Conservative lawmakers in the 650-seat Commons, parliament's main elected house, or from the 10 members of Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party who prop up May's minority government with support on key votes."The market is confident that May will win tonight's vote of no confidence. The DUP and Tory rebels have pledged their support. They may not be in favour of her Brexit deal but this isn't to say that they want a Labour government. Current market levels suggest that traders are comfortable that a win is in the bag for the PM. This confidence is supporting the pound and domestic stocks in the FTSE," said City Index analyst Fiona Cincotta. The risk of the UK leaving without an exit deal has never appeared greater, EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said, after the UK parliament overwhelmingly rejected the divorce deal struck with Brussels.The UK is due to leave the EU on March 29. Without a deal, EU rules would cease to apply in the UK overnight, likely causing severe disruptions for people and businesses on both sides.Extending the deadline would be "legally and technically possible," French European affairs minister Nathalie Loiseau told France Inter radio, noting that the 27 remaining member states would have to agree to the move.However, it would depend on London's reasons for requesting a delay, she said.Meanwhile, the Bank of England had warned earlier that a no-deal Brexit would cause a severe recession in the UK, the likes of which not even seen during the global financial crisis a decade ago.The central bank's analysis projected that inflation could hit 6.5% as the pound dives in a no-deal or disorderly Brexit.Governor Mark Carney also predicted that food prices could jump as much as 10% if there is a 25% slump in the pound due to a no-deal Brexit.The bank expects inflation to fall below the 2% target in coming months due to lower oil prices and forecast 1.75% inflation for January."There is still a non-negligible likelihood of hard Brexit with its potential detrimental outcome for GBP. This makes outright long GBP positions tricky, particularly in the context of the upcoming negotiations (domestically among the Conservative party MPs and wider parliament, and externally with the EU) unlikely being straightforward and the associated headline news. Still, and as per Brexit and the bumpy ride to its eventual recovery we see a material upside to the heavily undervalued GBP," said analysts at ING. On the economic front, UK consumer price growth slowed to its weakest level in nearly two years in December, driven by a big fall in fuel prices.The consumer price inflation eased to 2.1% from 2.3% in November, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed. The slowdown was in line with economists' expectations."Inflation eased mainly due to a big fall in petrol, with oil prices tumbling in recent months," ONS Head of Inflation Mike Hardie said.The euro was marginally higher, at USD1.1402 at the European equities close, against USD1.1393 late Tuesday. Stocks in New York were higher at the London equities close following upbeat earnings reports from two of the countries high-profile banks.The DJIA was up 0.7%, the S&P 500 index up 0.4% and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.5%.Bank of America reported fourth-quarter net income of USD7.3 billion, up threefold from the prior year, driven by continued strong operating leverage and asset quality, as well as the benefit of tax reform impacting 2018.Fourth-quarter net income was up 39% adjusting for the impact of the Tax Act in the prior year. Pretax income was USD8.7 billion rose 41%, or 22% on an adjusted basis from the prior year. Earnings per share was USD0.70, up threefold or 49% on an adjusted basis. Bank of America shares were up 6.1% in New York.Goldman Sachs Group reported that its fourth-quarter net earnings applicable to common shareholders were USD2.32 billion, or USD6.04 per share, compared to a loss of USD2.14 billion or USD5.51 per share last year.Goldman Sachs was up 5.9% in New York.In US economic news, the Labor Department released a report showing another steep drop in import prices in the month of December, reflecting a continued nosedive in fuel pricesThe Labor Department said import prices tumbled by 1.0% in December after plunging by a revised 1.9% in November.Economists had expected import prices to plummet by 1.3% compared to the 1.6% slump originally reported for the previous month.The report said export prices also fell by 0.6% in December after sliding by a revised 0.8% in November. The drop in export prices matched economist estimates.Brent oil was higher, quoted at USD60.70 a barrel at the London equities close from USD59.92 at the close Tuesday.Gold was higher, quoted at USD1,293.82 an ounce at the London equities close against USD1,288.23 late Tuesday."The fact that the Fed has stopped hiking interest rates should be good news for noninterest-bearing and low-yielding assets, such as gold, silver and copper. What's more, the Fed's likely inaction this year should help to devalue the dollar against her major rivals. This should also help to boost these buck-denominated commodities," said Forex.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada. The economic events calendar on Thursday has eurozone inflation readings at 1000 BST.The UK corporate calendar on Thursday has trading statements from Primark clothing chain owner Associated British Foods, credit checking agency Experian, hospitality firm Whitbread and accounting software provider Sage Group.