Advertisement
UK markets closed
  • FTSE 100

    7,952.62
    +20.64 (+0.26%)
     
  • FTSE 250

    19,884.73
    +74.07 (+0.37%)
     
  • AIM

    743.26
    +1.15 (+0.15%)
     
  • GBP/EUR

    1.1698
    +0.0004 (+0.04%)
     
  • GBP/USD

    1.2620
    -0.0002 (-0.02%)
     
  • Bitcoin GBP

    56,016.29
    +939.57 (+1.71%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • S&P 500

    5,254.35
    +5.86 (+0.11%)
     
  • DOW

    39,807.37
    +47.29 (+0.12%)
     
  • CRUDE OIL

    83.11
    -0.06 (-0.07%)
     
  • GOLD FUTURES

    2,254.80
    +16.40 (+0.73%)
     
  • NIKKEI 225

    40,400.64
    +232.57 (+0.58%)
     
  • HANG SENG

    16,541.42
    +148.58 (+0.91%)
     
  • DAX

    18,492.49
    +15.40 (+0.08%)
     
  • CAC 40

    8,205.81
    +1.00 (+0.01%)
     

Britain's FTSE recovers slightly but remains near 3-year lows

* FTSE 100 (NasdaqGS: Z - news) remains near 3-year lows

* Exane cuts price target on top UK bank stocks

* FTSE 20 pct below last year's record high

* Sainsbury (Amsterdam: SJ6.AS - news) up after sales rise according to Kantar

By Sudip Kar-Gupta

LONDON, Feb 9 (Reuters) - A fall in the shares of major banks and mining stocks kept Britain's top share index near three-year lows on Tuesday, as concerns lingered over the global economy and the health of the financial sector.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index, which fell 2.7 percent on Monday, recovered slightly to rise 0.3 percent but the index remained close to its lowest level in around three years.

ADVERTISEMENT

Shares (Berlin: DI6.BE - news) in Sainsbury rose 1.8 percent after the supermarket group posted higher sales, according to data from Kantar Worldpanel.

However, a drop in heavyweight banking stocks such as Barclays (LSE: BARC.L - news) and HSBC curbed the FTSE's recovery.

Mining stocks also fell sharply, with Anglo American (LSE: AAL.L - news) down 4.7 percent after Anglo American's Kumba division posted lower profits.

Signs of a global economic slowdown have hit world stock markets since the start of 2016, and raised concerns about the stability of the European banking system.

"There are worries about global growth, and fears of a recession are starting to emerge. The banks are getting hit hard," said Richard Griffiths, associate director at Berkeley Futures.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS - news) analysts wrote that while there were no signs of any strain in terms of euro or U.S (Other OTC: UBGXF - news) . dollar funding in money markets for European banks, market liquidity had nevertheless reduced.

Exane BNP Paribas also cut its price targets on Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland (LSE: RBS.L - news) and Standard Chartered (BSE: 580001.BO - news) , citing the pressures on the sector.

The FTSE 100 hit a record high of 7,122.74 points in April (LSE: 0N69.L - news) 2015 but has steadily lost ground since then. The index is down 20 percent from that record level and down nearly 10 percent since the start of 2016. (editing by Dominic Evans)