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LONDON (Alliance News) - Stocks opened lower in London and the pound was continuing to slide Monday amid growing market concern of a vote by the UK next week to leave the European Union.

Banks and insurers were among the worst blue-chip fallers, with Barclays down 1.7% and Standard Chartered off 1.8%. Standard Life was down 1.4% and Legal & General down 1.5%.

An ORB poll for the Independent newspaper on Friday gave Leave a 10-point lead over Remain with the referendum fast approaching on Thursday next week.

Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: down 0.5% at 6,084.83
FTSE 250: down 0.7% at 16,706.59
AIM ALL-SHARE: down 0.2% at 738.48
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Hang Seng: down 2.6% at 20,493.64
Nikkei 225: closed down 3.5% at 16,019.18
DJIA: closed down 0.7% at 17,865.34
S&P 500: closed down 0.9% at 2,096.07
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GBP: down at USD1.4186 (USD1.4336)
EUR: flat at USD1.1266 (USD1.1274)

GOLD: up at USD1,282.12 per ounce (USD1,268.40)
OIL (Brent): down at USD50.03 a barrel (USD50.88)

(changes since previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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Monday's Key Economic Events still to come
(all times in BST)

14:30 UK Conference Board leading economic index
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US President Barack Obama on Sunday called the mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Florida earlier in the day an "act of terror" and "act of hate". At least 50 people were killed and 53 others wounded, including a police officer, early Sunday in the shooting at the popular gay nightclub Pulse in Orlando, Florida. It is the deadliest shooting incident in the US history. The gunman, identified by authorities as Omar Mateen of Port St. Lucie, Florida, was found dead inside the nightclub after a shootout with the police. The latest media reports also said the terror group the Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the nightclub attack.
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England and Russia were warned Sunday they could be disqualified from Euro 2016 if there is further violence involving their fans at the tournament. UEFA's executive committee said both federations could be disqualified irrespective of any disciplinary measures taken if there is a repeat of the scenes in Marseille around Saturday's match between the two nations. Disciplinary proceedings were earlier opened by European football's organizing body against the Russian Football Union after fans appeared to charge England supporters at the end of the match.
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Fitch Ratings affirmed the sovereign ratings of the UK at 'AA+' with stable outlook as it benefits from a high income, diversified and flexible economy. The credible macroeconomic policy framework and sterling's international reserve currency status also underpins the ratings. Fitch assessed that a vote to leave the EU after the referendum on June 23 would be a moderate credit negative for the UK, affecting its medium-term growth and investment prospects and its external position. "In the event of a 'Leave' vote, and as we have guided previously, we would review the UK's ratings shortly after the referendum result," Fitch said.
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A decision by Britain to exit the EU would have a major effect on the entire continent's economy, German business and financial experts have told dpa. "Thirteen per cent of Europe's citizens reside in Britain, and Britain accounts for 17% of the bloc's economic power," said Achim Wambach, head of the Mannheim-based Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW). Not only would there be huge consequences for Britain if its citizens decide in a referendum on June 23 that it should leave the EU, but the bloc would feel the after-effects of the decision too, he added.
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Industrial output in China was up 6.0% on year in May, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday - in line with expectations and unchanged from the previous month. Year to date, output was up 5.9%. The bureau also said that retail sales were up 10.0% on year - shy of forecasts for 10.1%, which would have been unchanged. Year to date, sales were up 10.2%. Also, fixed asset investment gained an annual 9.6%. That was well shy of expectations for 10.5%, which would have been the same as the April reading.
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Japan's business survey index of large manufacturers worsened in the three months ended June, while future situation is expected to improve, the quarterly survey by the Ministry of Finance and the Cabinet office showed. The Business Survey Index, or BSI, dropped to -11.1 in the three-month period to June from -7.9 in the previous three months.
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A court session was due to open in South Africa on Monday to sentence Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp after an appeals court overturned his initial conviction of manslaughter. A murder conviction carries a minimum sentence of 15 years in South Africa, though the sentence of the 29-year-old could be reduced to take into account time already served. Pistorius fired four shots at Steenkamp through a locked toilet door at his home in Pretoria in the early hours of February 14 - Valentine's Day - 2013. The 29-year-old model died at the scene.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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TRADERS: MACQUARIE CUTS VODAFONE TO 'NEUTRAL' (OUTPERFORM)
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TRADERS: KEPLER CHEUVREUX INITIATES INTERTEK WITH 'HOLD'
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BARCLAYS RAISES ELECTROCOMPONENTS TO 'EQUAL WEIGHT' ('UNDERWEIGHT'); 289 (212) PENCE
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TRADERS: CITIGROUP RAISES RESTAURANT GROUP TO 'NEUTRAL' ('SELL')
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TRADERS: CREDIT SUISSE INITIATES HISCOX WITH 'OUTPERFORM'
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Inmarsat said it has entered a strategic partnership with Australia-based satellite services provider SpeedCast International Ltd to deliver Inmarsat's Fleet Xpress maritime broadband service. Under the partnership SpeedCast will integrate the Fleet Xpress service within its own maritime services portfolio, and over the next five years will roll out Fleet Xpress to around 2,000 vessels. Inmarsat said the two-way partnership will enable Inmarsat to use SpeedCast's "unrivalled" global Ku-band satellite network for its Xpress link customers.
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British budget airline easyJet may set up a separate European business if the UK votes to leave the European Union in next week's referendum, The Telegraph reported. EasyJet has considered a contingency plan in the event of a Brexit, considering options including obtaining an air operators certificate in an EU country, which would require it to establish a local holding company, the newspaper said. easyJet also has examined making better use of its Swiss air operators certificate and easyJet Switzerland subsidiary if Britain votes to leave.
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BT Group's chairman and chief executive, along with union leaders, are sending a joint letter to staff saying they want the UK to stay in a reformed European Union, the BBC reported. The leaders of the CWU and Prospect unions, which have members among BT's 81,400 staff, will join the BT bosses to say the vote will have a big impact on the company. Whilst they will urge staff to vote, they will say it is up to them how they vote at the upcoming referendum.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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UBM said the US Department of Justice has filed for the clearance of its sale of PR Newswire, a step towards UBM completing the sale. The company agreed the sale of PR Newswire business towards the end of 2015 for USD841.0 million to Cision, a PR software company owned by Chicago-based private equity house GTCR Canyon Holdings. The sale is still under review in the UK. In May the UK's antitrust regulator, the Competition & Markets Authority, said it was probing the sale to see whether it would result in a substantial lessening of competition. However, PR Newswire and Cision both have a much larger presence in the US.
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COMPANIES - LONDON MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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Investment company Imperial Innovations Group said Woodford Investment Management has received approval from the Financial Conduct Authority to acquire a holding of 20% or more in Imperial and, as such, has been conditionally allotted further shares. Woodford now will hold a 21.3% stake in Imperial, or 34.4 million shares.
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Fitbug Holdings said it is considering raising equity in the near future and that talks are underway with its lenders regarding the company's debt pile, as the company reported a wider loss in 2015 as revenue dropped and costs rose. The wearable health tracker maker reported a GBP6.5 million pretax loss in 2015 compared to the GBP3.8 million loss in 2014, as revenue almost halved to GBP1.3 million from GBP2.3 million.
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Georgia Healthcare Group said it has appointed Givi Giorgadze as chief executive of its medical insurance company, Imedi L, from the beginning of July. Giorgadze has previously held roles at Bank of Georgia Holdings, from which Georgia Healthcare was spun-out last November, for seven years, most recently as deputy head of investor management from 2013 to 2015. Bank of Georgia has since renamed itself BGEO Group PLC. It retains a 65% stake in Georgia Healthcare.
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COMPANIES - INTERNATIONAL
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Wal-Mart Stores is preparing to appoint its China head, Sean Clarke, as the chief executive officer of the UK supermarket chain Asda, Sky News reported. Wal-Mart may make an announcement as soon as this week, the report said.
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The mobile telecommunication network of German provider Deutsche Telekom was massively disrupted nationwide Saturday, according to a spokeswoman for the company. The emergency call system was still functioning, she said. Engineers were working flat out to end the disturbance to the system, she said. The cause of the disruption was not immediately known. The landline network was working normally, the company said.
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Monday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs

No Events Scheduled
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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