UK Stock Markets Decline Amid Broad Selloff

By Shubham Batra
(Reuters) – The UK's main stock indexes fell on Tuesday amid a broad selloff led by losses in miners after China failed to specify fiscal measures to stimulate the ailing economy, while homebuilder Vistry dropped after it cut its annual profit outlook.

The blue-chip index FTSE 100 was down 1% by 0718 GMT, while the midcap index FTSE 250 fell 0.8%.

All sectors in the FTSE 350 were trading in the red, driven by industrial metal miners that slipped over 4% as prices of base metals fell after initial optimism over top consumer China's stimulus measures faded.
Chinese officials disappointed markets by providing few details on plans to bolster China's slowing economy.

Other sectors such as banks and energy also saw heavy selling pressure, with the latter down 0.7%, tracking lower oil prices.

Shares of Vistry slipped 33% after cutting its fiscal 2024 profit outlook by 80 million pounds ($104.7 million), hurt by increased build costs in one of its divisions.

The homebuilder dragged the household goods and home construction sector down by nearly 7% to a three-month low, and the index was on track to log its biggest single-day percentage fall in two years.

Imperial Brands was the top percentage gainer on the FTSE 100 with a 4.4% jump as it forecast a growth of 20% to 30% in fiscal 2024 next generation products revenue and announced shareholder returns of 2.8 billion pounds.

Meanwhile, a survey showed British shoppers increased their spending moderately in annual terms last month despite industry concerns about tax rises in Finance Minister Rachel Reeves' upcoming budget and a looming rise in household energy bills.