Ex-dividend trading trips FTSE 100; travel firm TUI slumps

London-listed shares of the world's largest tourism company tumbled 3.8% as a halt in global travel forced it to cancel holidays, wiping out revenue for three months. A 1% decline for the FTSE 100 pulled it back from three-week highs, with firms including AstraZeneca Plc, BP Plc, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Legal & General Group Plc trading without entitlement to a dividend payout.

The FTSE 100 fell for the first time in five days on Thursday as a clutch of blue-chip firms traded ex-dividend, while travel firm TUI slid after posting a quarterly loss of 1.1 billion euros due to the COVID-19 pandemic. London-listed shares of the world's largest tourism company tumbled 3.8% as a halt in global travel forced it to cancel holidays, wiping out revenue for three months.

A 1% decline for the FTSE 100 pulled it back from three-week highs, with firms including AstraZeneca Plc, BP Plc, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Legal & General Group Plc trading without entitlement to a dividend payout. The mid-cap FTSE 250 was off 0.5%, led by bus company National Express Group Plc, which slipped 6.2% after reporting a first-half pre-tax loss and saying it was bracing for more pressure over the next year.

Insurer Just Group rose 7.1% after posting higher first-half earnings and issuing a strong sales forecast for the last six months of the year.