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(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Monday amid optimism over the coronavirus, though gains by the FTSE 100 were restricted by housebuilders amid reported weakness in the UK housing market.
In the FTSE 250, Aston Martin Lagonda roared ahead after the sports car maker completed its rights issue fundraising, as a new era under new chair Lawrence Stroll begins.
Europe saw encouraging signs on the virus pandemic on Sunday, with Italy, Spain, France and the UK all reporting drops in daily death tolls and slowing infection rates.
Mounting evidence suggests that the lockdowns and social distancing are slowing the spread of the virus. In turn, this has intensified planning in many countries to begin loosening curbs on movement and easing the crushing pressure on national economies.
Germany will take its first step back towards normality, with smaller shops in some regions opening up for the first time in a month after politicians declared the coronavirus "under control".
Hard-hit Spain has extended a nationwide shutdown but said it will ease restrictions to allow children time outside. Switzerland, Austria, Denmark and Finland all began reopening shops and schools.
The large-cap FTSE 100 index was up 5.09 points, or 0.1%, at 5,792.05 early Monday. The mid-cap FTSE 250 index was up 73.42 points, or 0.5%, at 15,932.71. The AIM All-Share index was up 0.8% at 765.22.
The Cboe UK 100 index was up 0.6% at 9,811.15. The Cboe 250 was up 0.2% at 13,614.25 and the Cboe Small Companies up 0.1% at 8,785.68.
In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris was down 0.1% while the DAX 30 in Frankfurt was up 0.3% early Monday.
In the FTSE 100, easyJet was the best performer, up 2.5%. Late Friday, the budget airline said shareholders will get a vote on the future of its chief executive and chair at a general meeting, following calls from its founder and largest shareholder to revamp senior leadership.
Founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou has repeatedly criticised management for its order of 107 Airbus jets. This deal was signed in 2013 at an estimated cost of GBP4.5 billion.
At the other end of the large-cap index, Centrica was the worst performer, down 3.9% after HSBC downgraded the British Gas parent company to Reduce from Hold.
Prudential was down 2.5% after HSBC cut the insurer to Hold from Buy.
Housebuilders were in the red after disappointing UK house price data from Rightmove. Industry experts warned the housing market was barely functioning due to lockdown restrictions.
Taylor Wimpey was down 3.1%, Barratt Developments down 2.8%, and Persimmon, down 2.7%.
The latest data from Rightmove showed that the average price of property coming to market in the UK from March 8 to April 11 dipped 0.2% to GBP311,950. In April last year, UK house prices increased 2.1%.
Miles Shipside, Rightmove director and housing market analyst, said: "We think it will take several months or more for the market to find its feet in this new unsteady world."
In the FTSE 250, Aston Martin Lagonda was the best performer, up 14%. Aston Martin said it received acceptances for 98% of its 4-for-1 rights issue as the embattled luxury carmaker seeks to bolster its finances.
At the other end of the midcap, Plus500 was down 3.7% after the contract-for-difference provider said Chief Executive Asaf Elimelech has decided to step down from his role with immediate effect. The company named Chief Operating Officer David Zruia as interim CEO. Elimelech will serve a 12-month notice period and will work in a transitional role alongside Zruia until a permanent replacement is appointed, Plus500 added.
The pound was quoted at USD1.2455 Monday morning, flat against USD1.2457 at the London equities close Friday.
Downing Street has hit back at newspaper reports that UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his administration dragged their feet in the run-up to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Number 10 accused the Sunday Times of "falsehoods" and "errors" after the newspaper published a piece in which a Whitehall source claimed the government "missed the boat on testing and PPE", referring to personal protective equipment.
The article also claimed the Johnson administration "just watched" as the death toll mounted in Wuhan, China. A government spokesman said: "This article contains a series of falsehoods and errors and actively misrepresents the enormous amount of work which was going on in government at the earliest stages of the coronavirus outbreak."
The euro was quoted at USD1.0865, up from USD1.0838. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY107.82, up from JPY107.52.
Oil was priced at USD27.57 a barrel on Monday morning, down from USD28.21 late Friday. Gold was quoted at USD1,682.23 an ounce, lower than USD1,690.68.
The Japanese Nikkei 225 index closed down 1.2%. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed up 0.5%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong is down 0.1%.
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com
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