LONDON: UK stocks opened 30 to 33 points lower on Monday trade with weak Chinese economic data set to weigh on the market, according to financial bookmakers. FTSE 100 index tumbled 0.5 percent.
The UK blue chip index fell 0.2 percent to 6,853.44 points on Friday.
China’s trade performance slumped in January, with exports falling 3.3 percent from year-ago levels while imports tumbled 19.9 percent, far worse than analysts had expected and highlighting deepening weakness in the Chinese economy.
British bank HSBC Holdings Plc admitted on Sunday failings by its Swiss subsidiary, in response to media reports it helped wealthy customers dodge taxes and conceal millions of dollars of assets.
The U.S. Department of Justice is examining currency-linked investments offered by Barclays and UBS , the Financial Times reported on Sunday.
Standard Chartered Plc will shift its retail bank’s focus from mass market to affluent customers and urge more customers online as part of a broader turnaround strategy for the lender, a senior executive told Reuters.
Anglo American Platinum, the world’s biggest platinum producer, reported a worse than expected 46 percent fall in annual profit on Monday, hit by South African mining strikes and falling prices. Amplats, the South African unit of global miner Anglo American , said headline EPS totaled 301 cents in the year ending December, well below 483 cents estimate in a Reuters poll of 10 analysts.
Lost growth will cost Britain billions of pounds if it holds a referendum on European Union membership, as increased economic uncertainty leads to a reduction in investment, research from Dutch bank ING suggested on Monday.
