Global gloom hits UK stocks, Royal Mail slides on broker downgrade

The London Stock Exchange Group offices are seen in the City of London, Britain, December 29, 2017. REUTERS/Toby Melville

May 24 (Reuters) – UK’s FTSE 100 slipped on Tuesday as the global mood soured due to bleak results from social media firm Snap Inc (SNAP.N), while shares in Royal Mail slid after a brokerage downgraded the postal company.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 (.FTSE) fell 0.9% by 0712 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 index (.FTMC) also dropped 0.9%.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq’s futures tumbled 2%, pointing to sharp opening losses for Wall Street after Snap Inc (SNAP.N) said the economy had worsened faster than expected in the last month and slashed its quarterly forecast. Its shares were down about 35% in Frankfurt trading. read more

British advertising group WPP (WPP.L) tumbled 3.1% to hit its lowest since March 8, while broadcaster ITV (ITV.L) dropped 3.6%.

Royal Mail (RMG.L) slid 6.5% after Peel Hunt downgraded the stock to “sell” from “buy”, saying it now assumes no dividends or buybacks citing a weakening consumer environment and inflationary pressures.

Restaurant Group Plc (RTN.L) inched up 0.7% as it said strong sales at Wagamama and its Frankie & Benny’s chain of restaurants were helping offset the impact of inflation on expenses. read more

Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh.V

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