London stocks open lower on fears of second wave of infections, Fed outlook

London stocks opened lower on Thursday as fears of a second wave of COVID-19 infections in the United States and a gloomy outlook by the Federal Reserve trumped optimism around a global economic revival.The British mid-cap index fell 2.8%.

London stocks opened lower on Thursday as fears of a second wave of COVID-19 infections in the United States and a gloomy outlook by the Federal Reserve trumped optimism around a global economic revival. Total cases of the novel coronavirus in the United States cases surpassed 2 million on Wednesday, according to a Reuters tally.

The Fed projected the U.S. economy to shrink 6.5% in 2020 and signalled it plans years of extraordinary support for an economy facing a long road back from the COVID-19 pandemic. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index slipped 2.7%, with oil & gas stocks leading declines with a 4.1% tumble.

Most cyclical stocks traded lower at the opening bell, while defensive healthcare stocks inched higher. The British mid-cap index fell 2.8%.