LONDON MARKETS: FTSE 100 Ends In The Red, But Worldpay Soars On Takeover News

Oil producers decline, but miners mixed as gold gains

U.K. stocks closed with modest losses Tuesday, but the selloff was limited by gains among miners, as well as payments processor Worldpay Group PLC and supermarket chain J Sainsbury PLC.

The FTSE 100declined 0.3% to end at 7,357.23, giving up part of Monday's advance (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ftse-100-on-track-to-break-4-day-losing-streak-as-oil-rallies-2017-07-03).

Trading had been expected to be somewhat muted as the U.S. marks the Independence Day holiday.

See:July 4th: Which markets are closed? (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/july-4th-which-markets-are-closed-2017-06-30)

Worldpay rally: Shares in Worldpay(WPG.LN)closed 28% higher after the company confirmed it has been approached by U.S. rival Vantiv Inc(VNTV)and giant American bank J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.(JPM)about a possible takeover.

"There can be no certainty either that an offer will be made," Worldpay said.

Read:Worldpay's big stock jump shows it's in a key growth industry (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/british-payments-processor-soars-nearly-30-on-news-of-possible-american-takeover-2017-07-04)

The confirmation comes a day after Danish digital-payments company Nets AS(NETS.KO)said it had been approached by potential buyers.

Supermarket sweep: J Sainsbury PLC(SBRY.LN)(SBRY.LN)rose 0.3% after the supermarket chain said first-quarter same-store sales grew 2.3% (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/sainsbury-sales-rise-cost-savings-on-track-2017-07-04) and that its cost-saving plan remains on track.

Rival supermarket chain Tesco PLC(TSCO.LN) (TSCO.LN)was down 0.2%, and Wm. Morrison Supermarkets PLC(MRW.LN) (MRW.LN)gave up 0.4%.

Miners mainly higher: In the mining group, shares of Anglo American PLC(AAL.LN)gained 0.2%, and Rio Tinto PLC(RIO) (RIO) (RIO)added 0.1%, though Antofagasta PLC(ANTO.LN)gave up 0.1%.

Showing bigger gains, precious-metals producers Fresnillo PLC(FRES.LN)and Randgold Resources Ltd.(RRS.LN) (RRS.LN)moved up 1.1% and 2%, respectively, as gold pricesrose.

The gains for gold, a traditional safety play, came as North Korea said it had successfully test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/north-korea-claims-successful-test-firing-of-an-icbm-2017-07-04), which dropped into seas near Japan. Gold added 0.5% to $1,225 an ounce

Energy slip: Shares in oil producer BP PLC(BP.LN) (BP.LN)shed 0.3%, while rival Royal Dutch Shell PLC(RDSB.LN) (RDSB.LN)finished roughly flat.

Crude prices initially traded slightly lower (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-gains-aiming-for-eight-winning-sessions-in-a-row-2017-07-03) on Tuesday after rising eight sessions in a row, but more recently were a little higher.

Economic docket: A reading on U.K. construction for June showed growth in the sector slowed last month. The construction purchasing managers index fell to 54.8 in June, down from 56 in May.

The poundfetched $1.2922, down slightly from $1.2941 late Monday in New York.

Mortgage rules: The Bank of England changed its mortgage recommendation to lenders, saying they should stress test whether borrowers could still afford their mortgages if rates were to go up three percentage points.

"This recommendation applies to all lenders which extend residential mortgage lending in excess of GBP100 million per annum," the BOE said.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 04, 2017 12:38 ET (16:38 GMT)