NEW YORK: Royal Dutch Shell Plc led U.K. stocks lower, erasing earlier gains, after a report showed U.S. oil inventories grew more than expected last week.
The FTSE 100 Index lost 0.4 percent to 6,937.41 at the close in London, wiping out an earlier rally of as much as 0.7 percent fueled by Shell’s $70 billion takeover of BG Group Plc. The FTSE All-Share Index fell 0.2 percent, while Ireland’s ISEQ Index increased 0.1 percent.
Shell lost 5.3 percent, the steepest decline since 2009. Homebuilders Bellway Plc and Berkeley Group Holdings Plc retreated after Labour Party leader Ed Miliband vowed to close a non-domicile tax loophole used by the wealthy.
Shares of BG rallied 27 percent following the announcement of Shell’s purchase, which is oil and gas industry’s biggest deal in at least a decade.
