FTSE 100 set for monthly declines, pressured by pandemic woes

IAG shed 5.3% as it said it would raise about 2.75 billion euros ($3.27 billion) in a capital increase backed by its biggest shareholder, Qatar Airways, to strengthen its finances after the pandemic wiped out global travel. NatWest Group tumbled 0.9% after posting a first-half loss due to swelling loan loss provisions.

London's FTSE 100 was set for its first monthly decline since the coronavirus-driven crash in March as a historic slump in the U.S. economy fanned fears of a slower global recovery, while British Airways-owner IAG slipped on plans to raise equity. IAG shed 5.3% as it said it would raise about 2.75 billion euros ($3.27 billion) in a capital increase backed by its biggest shareholder, Qatar Airways, to strengthen its finances after the pandemic wiped out global travel.

NatWest Group tumbled 0.9% after posting a first-half loss due to swelling loan loss provisions. The FTSE 100, however, was flat on Friday, helped by a 1.1% gain for British American Tobacco as it reported a better-than-expected first-half profit on strong demand from the United States, its biggest market.

The mid-cap FTSE 250 was also flat, with losses for industrial, financial and consumer discretionary stocks countered by gains in materials, real estate and tech-related stocks.