StockMarketWire.com - FTSE closed lower on Wednesday as investors continued to fret about a potential second wave of Covid-19 infections as lockdowns ease and data showed the British economy slumping in March.
UK gross domestic product shrank 5.8% in March, though that was better than market expectations of a 7.9% contraction.
At 16:30, the benchmark FTSE 100 index was down 1.5%, at 5,904.05 points.
Cosmetics company Warpaint London rose 4.8%% to 44p despite reporting a 63% drop in annual profit and scrapped its final dividend, as a modest rise in sales was tempered by lower margins.
Thermal energy management and pumping specialist Spirax-Sarco Engineering rose 3% to £95.5 after its operating profit fell in the first four months of the year.
The company, however, said operating margins remained above 21% due to cost containment actions.
Software company Sage was up 1.8%% to 666.6p, having booked a 39% rise in first-half profit, driven by a modest rise in revenue and one-off gains from the sale of its payments and Brazilian businesses.
Sage declared an interim dividend of 5.93p, up 2.5% on-year.
House builder Crest Nicholson rallied 1.5% to 232.4p, as it prepared for a phased restart of activity on its sites next week.
Plumbing company Ferguson was 0.9% higher to £60.2, despite third-quarter revenue slipping 2.2% following a 15.3% slump in April.
Wealth manager Brewin Dolphin edged down 0.6% to 267.5p as it held its interim dividend steady at 4.4p per share, despite reporting a 5.1% fall in profit owing to weaker markets.
House builder Taylor Wimpey dropped 2.7% to 141.9p despite announcing that it was reopening its show homes and sales centres from next Friday, amid 'stable' housing market conditions.
Landscape products group Marshalls shed 2.7% to 603p on announcing that up to 400 jobs could be impacted by restructuring plans after its sales slumped 27% in the first fourth months of the year.
Inter-dealer broker TP ICAP fell 6.2% to 349p despite reporting first-quarter revenue up 17%, reflecting higher client volumes due to market volatility caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Luxury carmaker Aston Martin skidded 16% to 34.9p as it booked deeper losses amid a 60% slide in sales.
Aston Martin said it was on track to start deliveries in the summer.
Story provided by StockMarketWire.com
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