London Report: FTSE flat as Pru data counter geopolitical tensions in Ukraine
BRITAIN’S top shares yesterday were pegged back by tension between the west and Russia over Ukraine, although robust results lifted insurance and pensions group Prudential.
The FTSE 100 closed down 0.4 of a point – flat in percentage terms – at 6,632.42 points.
A convoy of 280 trucks that Russia said were carrying humanitarian aid for Ukraine set off yesterday, amid warnings to Moscow against using help as a pretext for an invasion.
Tensions in Ukraine meant travel-based stocks were mixed, with easyJet unchanged at 1,258p, British Airways owner International Airlines Group up 0.24 per cent to 332p while TUI Travel was down 0.06 per cent to 360.30p.
Prudential was up 2.2 per cent to 1,368p, after a 17 per cent rise in first-half operating profit and raised its interim dividend by 15 per cent.
Hargreaves Lansdown was the worst FTSE 100 performer in percentage terms, falling 2.9 per cent to 1,050p, after investment bank UBS opened coverage of the stock with a “sell” rating.