FTSE 100 clings to thin gain as banks edge lower

U.K. stocks edged higher on Monday, coming after a fifth week of advances, yet some bank and mining shares were struggling as the new trading week got underway.

The FTSE 100 was up 0.3% at 6,750.28 but it has darted between small gains and losses.

Topping the index Monday was home builder Taylor Wimpey PLC as shares rose 1.8%, coming after two straight sessions of declines.

The index on Friday ended up by 0.5%, lifted after poor economic data sent the pound sharply lower while it spurred expectations for monetary stimulus by the Bank of England when it meets on Aug. 4.

The pound on Monday has recovered somewhat, trading at $1.3132 after dropping to $1.3096 late Friday. It fell below $1.32 on Friday after the Markit’s PMI reading showing contraction for the services and manufacturing sectors in July.

Monday on the FTSE 100 , shares of Randgold Resources Ltd. fell 1.8% as the miner said difficulties at its Tongon gold mine in Ivory Coast will hurt production for the year. Repairs at the mine have been completed.

Shares of rival miner Fresnillo PLC were off 1.5%. Most metals prices were lower as strength in the dollar pushed the U.S. Dollar Index to a four-month high on Friday. But shares of iron ore heavyweight BHP Billiton were up 1.5%.

In the financial group, shares of Aberdeen Asset Management PLC slipped 0.1%. The company said assets under management rose during the third quarter by 2.9%. A net outflow of £8.9 billion during the period was offset by £17.5 billion in asset appreciation, said Aberdeen.

Bank shares began to drift lower, with Lloyds Banking Group PLC turning down 0.4% and Royal Bank of Scotland PLC slipping 0.2% but Standard Chartered PLC rose 0.4%.

There’s a “degree of concern seemingly mounting over the outcome of EU stress tests for the sector, which are due later this week. The London-listed constituents may well pass, but it’s going to be exposure to others in Europe that could end up proving costly for shareholders,” said Tony Cross, market analyst at Trustnet Direct, in a note.

On the midcap FTSE 250 index, William Hill PLC shares shot up 9% as a consortium made up of gaming companies 888 Holdings PLC and Rank Group PLC said they’re considering a potential takeover offer for William Hill.

Source: MarketWatch