FTSE 100 inches lower as investors grapple with Brexit fears

U.K. stocks fell Monday, hovering around a three-week low, as investors fretted over the Brexit vote on whether the U.K. should remain in the European Union.

The FTSE 100 fell 0.3% to 6,096.79, but was off session lows as health care and consumer-goods shares edged up. The London index was moving toward its lowest close since May 19, according to FactSet data.

The benchmark on Friday slid 1.9%, the biggest one-day loss since February 11, and marked a weekly loss of 1.5%.

“Market sentiment has started the week much in the same vein as it ended the last, under pressure. With Chinese economic data adding to the malaise, the safer haven plays are catching a sizeable bid as concerns over the U.K. referendum and global growth prospects [increase],” said Richard Perry, market analyst at Hantec Markets, in a note.

Search for a haven: Investors sought safety in gold, pushing prices for the metal up 0.7% at $1,282.50 an ounce. Among miners on the FTSE 100, only Randgold Resources PLC and Fresnillo PLC were higher, up 1.4% and 0.7%, respectively.

Ahead of Europe’s open, Asian equities marked sharp losses, with Japan’s Nikkei Average closing 3.5% lower. Analysts pointed to a strengthening in the yen on the back of worries about next week’s U.K. referendum on whether the country should leave the European Union.

The pound was down 1.2% against the yen at ¥150.57, after earlier hitting its lowest since Aug. 2013. Against the dollar, sterling was buying $1.4183, down from $1.4267 late Friday in New York.

As investors flocked into the fixed-income market, bank shares were lower, underscoring concerns about profitability in the industry as yields remain at record lows. Barclays PLC fell 1.5% and Standard Chartered PLC lost 1.3%.

Later this week, investors will hear monetary policy decisions from the Bank of England and the Federal Reserve.

Movers: Among consumer-goods shares, Unilever PLC rose 0.5% and beverage giant Diageo PLC picked up 0.3%.

Meanwhile, chip designer ARM Holdings PLC was down 2.2%.

G4S PLC shares on the mid-cap FTSE 250 index dropped 5% after the security firm on Sunday confirmed that Omar Matteen, the suspect in Sunday’s shooting at an Orlando, Fla. nightclub, was an employee. G4S said it’s cooperating with law enforcement authorities in their investigation of the shooting, which left 50 people dead.

Source: MarketWatch