- FTSE 100 down 0.8% to 6,522
- Gold up 0.7% to $1,350.79/oz
- £/$ – 1.3287
The FTSE 100 started the week on a downbeat note yesterday, falling 0.8% to close at 6,522.
Housebuilders and property companies were the worst hit. British Land was the day’s biggest faller, down 7.2%, while Land Securities lost 5.7% and Hammerson was 4.4% lower. Among housebuilders, Persimmon fell 6.8%, while Berkeley Group, Taylor Wimpey and Barratt Developments slid between 6.8% and 6.1%.
In Europe, the Paris CAC 40 fell 0.9% to 4,234 and the German Xetra Dax lost 0.7% to 9,709.
US markets were closed for a public holiday.
Overnight in Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell 0.7% to 15,669 and the broader Topix index lost 0.4% to 1,256. And in China, the CSI 300 gained 0.1% to 3,207 and the Shanghai Composite added 0.6% to 3,006.
Brent spot was trading at $49.47 early today, and in New York, crude oil was at $48.06. Spot gold was trading at $1,346 an ounce, silver was at $19.93 and platinum was at $1,057.
In the forex markets this morning, sterling was trading against the US dollar at 1.3168 and against the euro at 1.1796. The dollar was trading at 0.8958 against the euro and 101.75 against the Japanese yen.
And in the UK, housebuilder Persimmon says revenues rose in the first half of the year, but that it is “too early to say” what the effect of the EU referendum result will be on the housing market. Revenues rose by 12% to £1.49bn, with the number of completions up 6% to 7,238, and the average selling price up 6% to £205,000.