FTSE 100 inches up, LSE lags as Hong Kong bourse nixes bid

The FTSE 100 gained a bit on Tuesday, with investors hopeful ahead of U.S.-China trade talks later this week, which overshadowed a slump in LSE after the Hong Kong bourse dropped its takeover bid and recruiters fell after weak trading updates.

The FTSE 100 edged 0.1% higher by 0707 GMT, with the midcaps also rising by the same level. Ahead of the trade negotiations, corporate news dominated market moves, with LSE falling 6% after Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing scrapped its unsolicited $39 billion offer as it failed to convince LSE management.

Recruiters Pagegroup and Robert Walters plunged 15% and 10.4%, respectively, after their results revealed that a host of macroeconomic troubles including the U.S.-China trade war, Hong Kong protests and Brexit heavily hindered performance.

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