* FTSE 100, FTSE 250 up 0.3%
* China to reduce tariffs on some U.S. imports
* Royal Mail skids after trading update
* Beazley marks best day in over a decade
(Adds company news items, updates share moves to closing
prices)
By Shashwat Awasthi and Muvija M
Feb 6 (Reuters) - UK shares advanced for a fourth straight
session on Thursday as risk sentiment picked up after China
pledged to halve tariffs on some U.S. imports, though Royal Mail
slid to an all-time low after warning of a challenging year
ahead.
China will cut additional tariffs levied against 1,717 U.S.
goods last year, after a Phase 1 trade deal was signed last
month, and as fears persist over the coronavirus outbreak, which
has killed more than 550 people.
The FTSE 100 rose 0.3%, but oil majors Shell
and BP weighed on the index as they tracked
crude prices lower.
The FTSE 250 also added 0.3%, with insurer Beazley leading
gainers with an 8% jump - its best one-day gain since 2009 -
after its annual profit surged.
Royal Mail, on the other hand, dropped 5% to an
all-time low after the letter carrier warned outlook for the
2020-21 fiscal year was "challenging" and said the threat of a
labour strike in late 2019 hurt parcel revenue growth during the
Christmas period.
The company's strained relationship with the CWU union,
which has called for a strike ballot, "bodes ill for both
business as usual productivity improvements and reaping the
benefits of the medium-term strategy," Liberum analyst Gerald
Khoo wrote.
BULL MOMENTUM
Global markets have been attempting a recovery after sharp
losses last week, and were given a shot in the arm on Wednesday
by media reports that scientists had developed a drug against
the China-linked virus.
Though the World Health Organisation played down the
reports, hopes that the outbreak would soon be contained as well
as upbeat economic data from the United States helped boost
stock bourses.
"The momentum is clearly with the bulls at the moment, and
we see no reason to stand against that tide," OANDA analyst
Jeffrey Halley said.
"The potential for an aggressive and rapid correction lower
still lurks though, if negative Wuhan virus headlines emerge,"
he warned, adding that economic data for January was yet to show
any severe spillover in growth from the virus.
GlaxoSmithKline slipped 2.6%, following a more than
4% drop in the previous session when its fourth-quarter earnings
missed analysts' estimates.
NMC Health, whose shares have been battered after
criticism from short-seller Muddy Waters late last year, took a
U-turn to end 7.2% lower after soaring as much as 13% in early
deals.
However, catering group Compass Group added 3% and
was among top blue-chip risers after upbeat quarterly report.
(Reporting by Shashwat Awasthi and Muvija M in Bengaluru;
Editing by Bernard Orr, William Maclean)
