Skip to content

FTSE 100 Defies All Odds to Rebound Amidst Growing Pandemic Fears

UK flag waves in the area of a Big Ben clock.

The London stock market witnessed a huge rally on Friday the 13th of March after policymakers took serious actions to restrict further economic blows from the prevailing coronavirus pandemic.

This rally comes a day after the FTSE 100 (FTSE) witnessed its worst sell-off market since the 1987 “Black Monday” burst.

The blue-chip index rose by 2.46% at the close of the market on Friday after recording its worst trading week since the 2008 global economic crisis. The rally on Friday was mostly aided by miners and supermarket chains listed on the index.

FTSE 100 index on a daily chart, as of March 14, 2020. Data: TradingView.com

A Recap of the Week

Equities across the globe got pummeled on the 12th of March following an announcement by the United States President, Donald Trump, declaring a travel ban on Europe alongside the ECB’s decision to hold off on interest rate cuts. This instilled liquidity fears in investors which inadvertently triggered a sell-off.

Emergency hedgings including the BoE’s 50 basis point interest rate cut and the United Kingdom government’s proposed £30 billion stimuli have failed to give investors any reassurance concerning the nation’s economic growth. Investors and traders are now waiting on the United States lawmakers and the White House to agree on a stimulus package.

Also on Friday, Prime Minister, Boris Johnson announced that the proposed May local and mayoral elections in the country had been postponed for a year following growing coronavirus concerns.

Top Gainers and Losers of the Session

Overall, travel-related stocks continue to receive the hardest blows with Carnival Corporation (LSE: CCL) dropping 9.93% which represents its lowest point since 2009. This drop occurred after its subsidiary, Princess Cruises, announced that it would be suspending all voyages of its fleet for the next two months. Carnival closed the session at the bottom of the index, followed by travel company TUI (LSE: TUIT) which dropped 6.54%.

Online supermarket, Ocado (LSE: OCDO) closed the week 5.44% higher and was the only weekly gainer on the FTSE. The oil company, Premier Oil (LSE: PMO) jumped 26.77% on Friday, after receiving news on the prospect of realizing $100 million in savings on its annual capital expenditure plan to adapt to the decline in global oil price.

Miners Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO), BHP Group (LSE: BHP), and Anglo American (LSE: AAL) soared more than 7% and were the index’s top gainers for the day.

Best Crypto Exchange for Intermediate Traders and Investors

  • Invest in cryptocurrencies and 3,000+ other assets including stocks and precious metals.

  • 0% commission on stocks - buy in bulk or just a fraction from as little as $10. Other fees apply. For more information, visit etoro.com/trading/fees.

  • Copy top-performing traders in real time, automatically.

  • eToro USA is registered with FINRA for securities trading.

30+ million Users
Securities trading offered by eToro USA Securities, Inc. (“the BD”), member of FINRA and SIPC. Cryptocurrency offered by eToro USA LLC (“the MSB”) (NMLS: 1769299) and is not FDIC or SIPC insured. Investing involves risk, and content is provided for educational purposes only, does not imply a recommendation, and is not a guarantee of future performance. Finbold.com is not an affiliate and may be compensated if you access certain products or services offered by the MSB and/or the BD

Read Next:

Finance Digest

By subscribing you agree with Finbold T&C’s & Privacy Policy

Related posts

Sign Up

or

By submitting my information, I agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.

Already have an account? Sign In

Disclaimer: The information on this website is for general informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, tax, or investment advice. This site does not make any financial promotions, and all content is strictly informational. By using this site, you agree to our full disclaimer and terms of use. For more information, please read our complete Global Disclaimer.