Lack of confidence is trading reports today set the tone for London stocks activity and really failed to progress any further by close of business, as Unilever and Legal & General encouraged selling rather than buying.
The FTSE 100 index closed down 51 points or 2.12% to 4,524.5 as Unilever, the food and household goods producer, struggled to pull back from the negative sentiment surrounding its first-quarter results – even though sales were up they weren’t good enough for most analysts. Unilever closed down at its lowest level in around six months, as the share price fell 34.5p or 6.14% to 527p. Having started the day with a negative sales report on life, investment and pensions business, Legal & General has also ended the day down 2.25p or 2.32% to 94.75p. Slowing demand for mined goods has aff...
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