FTSE 100 falls as prolong lockdown fear offsets raft of stimulus measures

UK shares slipped on Monday after last week's bold bounce back as another wave of stimulus measures failed to calm investors worried by the possibility of a prolonged coronavirus-led shutdown in Britain.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 fell 0.8% by 0812 GMT, after posting its first weekly gain in seven weeks. China's central bank unexpectedly cut the rate on reverse repurchase agreements by 20 basis points, the largest in nearly five years, in a bid to relieve pressure on an economy ravaged by the pandemic.

Oil majors BP Plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc fell more than 2.5% as oil prices tumbled on fears about the economic hit from the pandemic as well as a price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia. A senior medical officer said the lockdown in Britain could last months and only be gradually lifted, raising fears of a deep slump in the economy.

Engineering company Rolls-Royce dropped 8.4% to the bottom of FTSE 100, while low-cost airline easyJet fell 2.6% after saying it had grounded its entire fleet and furloughed cabin crew employees for two months under a government job retention scheme.

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