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* FTSE 100 down 1.3%, FTSE 250 drops 0.7%
* UK retail sales plunge to a record low
* Shell, BP both down nearly 3%
* Pearson falls on revenue hit from school closures
(Updates to close)
By Devik Jain and Medha Singh
April 24 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 racked up losses for
the second consecutive week on Friday, weighed down by falling
oil majors BP and Shell while retail sales data showed the scale
of the economic fallout from the coronavirus crisis.
A report that Gilead Sciences Inc's closely-watched
experimental antiviral drug failed to help patients with severe
COVID-19 in a clinical trial clouded sentiment globally.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index ended 1.3% lower,
logging a 0.6% decline for the week marred by a historic plunge
in oil prices. Shares of BP Plc and Royal Dutch Shell
were down nearly 3%.
The domestically-focused FTSE 250 index slipped
0.7%.
Official figures on Friday showed UK retail sales suffered a
record sales hit in March, while consumer confidence held at its
lowest since 2009 as thousands of businesses and the vast
majority of shops were closed.
Trillions of dollars in stimulus measures from central banks
and governments worldwide, along with some easing of lockdown
restrictions, has helped the FTSE 100 recover from mid-March
lows, but it still stands nearly 25% below its January peak.
"The feeling is we've had a bear market rally," said Keith
Temperton, a sales trader at Tavira Securities.
"We're cautious into next week. We have fairly important
things coming out on the economic front (and) ... I imagine that
the market will struggle to absorb the bad data."
Luxury brand Burberry fell 3.6% after saying it
would not tap Britain's state furlough scheme and would pay its
employees who are unable to work because of store or site
closures during the coronavirus crisis.
Education group Pearson dropped 4.1% after it
posted a 5% fall in quarterly revenue and warned of a bigger hit
if social distancing measures are prolonged.
In a bright spot were homebuilders after Persimmon
said it would restart its construction sites in a phased manner
from Monday, making it the third company in the sector this week
to announce such a move.
Berkeley, Barratt and Taylor Wimpey
gained between 0.4% and 2.5%.
"Such signs of normality returning will be a key pillar of
the government's strategy, bolstering consumer confidence,
although any measures will be quickly rescinded if it looks like
the outbreak is returning," said Chris Beauchamp, chief market
analyst at IG in London.
Major European lenders including HSBC and Standard
Chartered report results next week where the borrowers
are expected to post a sharp rise in provisions against bad
loans as they struggle amid the economic downturn.
(Reporting by Devik Jain and Medha Singh in Bengaluru; editing
by Patrick Graham and Elaine Hardcastle)
