(Refiles to fix technical glitch on generation of price values
in text)
* FTSE 100 4.7%, FTSE 250 down 4.7%
* Meggitt, Rolls Royce lead the slide after JPM bearish note
* Supermarket chains the solde gainers
By Sruthi Shankar
March 18 (Reuters) - Britain's stock markets dived for the
eighth day in 10 on Wednesday, as more companies warned of a
severe hit to earnings from the coronavirus pandemic even as
policymakers pushed for fresh stimulus measures to support
global growth.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 fell 4.7%, with Boeing
supplier Meggit, aero-engines maker Rolls-Royce
dropping 22.5% and 14.2%, respectively, as evidence grew of the
profound damage the crisis is doing to global airlines.
U.S. investment bank JPMorgan said it would take several
years for the industry to recover in a widely-circulated note
that cut its price target on Rolls-Royce by 29%, citing falling
expectations for cash flow.
IT company Micro Focus International slumped 16.1%
as it scrapped its final dividend as part of its plan to brace
for the fall out of the pandemic.
Car sales network Pendragon dropped 20.5% as it
warned virus spread in the UK could reduce footfall and worsen
results that already show it losing money.
"Ultimately no amount of cash or measures to mitigate the
economic impact of the crash can tell investors what they want
to know right now, which is when daily life will return to
normal," said Russ Mould, investment director at online broker
AJ Bell.
The FTSE and other major stock markets, down by around a
third in the month since the scale of the virus outbreak began
to hit home, had recovered some ground on Tuesday as the Trump
administration pushed for a $1 trillion stimulus package and the
UK unveiled a 330 billion-pound lifeline of loan guarantees and
other measures.
But evidence of the carnage the shutdown will wreak in the
most exposed businesses continues to grow, with Prime Minister
Boris Johnson's announcement of a virtual shutdown of the
country hammering pubs, restaurant and retail companies.
Rather than growing 5% as previously forecast, the latest
Refinitiv data suggests companies listed on the pan-European
STOXX 600 will post a 4.1% decline in earnings between
January and March.
Wagamama owner Restaurant Brands and another pub
operator, Mitchells and Butler also outlined severe
falls on sales and efforts to shore up their financial situation
for later in the year.
Among the few gainers were supermarket chains, with WM
Morrison Supermarket and Sainbury gaining more
than 5% amid panic buying by shoppers.
"Across Europe, it feels like a reaction to yesterday's late
rebound," Connor Campbell, financial analyst at SpreadEx
"There are pockets of gains today like the UK supermarket
stocks are up. That's a sign that investors are looking at
sectors that may benefit from this crisis, that's a good sign
maybe, although that's not helping things today.
(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; editing by Patrick
Graham)
