The UK's FTSE 100 closed flat on Thursday, Aug 20, as gains in commodity-related stocks were offset by weakness elsewhere. The blue-chip index held steady at 10,748.16 points, while the midcap FTSE 250 fell 0.55% to 24,508.66 points.
JD Sports shed 14.32%, becoming the biggest decliner in the FTSE 100, after the sportswear and fashion retailer cut its profit outlook following a slump in second-quarter sales in its North American market.
"Several profit warnings in the previous year put a lid on any share price appreciation, and this latest downgrade will do little to cheer investor spirits," said Richard Hunter, head of markets at interactive investor.
Shares of insurer Legal & General and wealth manager Investec fell 3.9% and 4.6% respectively, as they traded ex-dividend.
The yield on British 30-year government bonds edged up 2.6 basis points to 5.81%, after having fallen to as low as 5.757% on Wednesday following a surprise U.S. Treasury buyback announcement.
Oil prices climbed to three-week highs, driven by concerns that the impasse in the Iran war would mean continued supply disruption from the Middle East. This advanced oil majors BP and Shell, which rose 2.4% and 0.6% respectively. [O/R]
Gold miners also rose. Fresnillo added 2.7%, Endeavour Mining rose 2.07%, and Pan African Resources gained 8.87%.
Industrial metal miners climbed 0.6%.
Consumer staples stocks including British American Tobacco, Diageo and Unilever were also higher, offering support to the main index.
Trainline fell 9%, extending losses from Wednesday when news broke that the competition regulator was at an early stage of investigating its ticket-pricing practices.
