FTSE pauses after 3-day rally as investors await trade moves

London's FTSE 100 retreated on Wednesday after rallying more than 1% over the past two sessions as investors awaited new developments on the U.S.-China trade dispute, while mall operator Intu dropped on prospects of a cash call. The FTSE 100, which had been holding at a near one-month high this week, inched down 0.1% at 0812 GMT.

While the FTSE 250 midcap index was more or less unchanged, Marks & Spencer stood out with a 7% jump as investors focussed on the retailer's like-for-like sales growth in the food business over a plunge in first-half earnings. Intu Properties slid 11.4% after saying it may need to raise additional cash and that letting activity slowed in the third quarter as some customers delayed decisions due to Brexit-driven uncertainty. It also forecasts annual rental income to fall 9%.

Mothercare shares shot up by 35% and were on course for their best day in nearly two decades. The baby products retailer shut all its UK stores and laid out plans to return the rest of the company to profitability by fiscal 2021.

Also Read: UPDATE 2-FTSE 100 hits one-month high; Brexit tussle bogs down midcaps

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