FTSE 100 movers: RBS, StanChart under the cosh; Pearson gains
London's FTSE 100 was down 0.9% to 7,205.19 in afternoon trade, dragged lower by disappointing results from RBS and Standard Chartered.
Shares in Royal Bank of Scotland fell after it said losses widened in the year to 31 December - its ninth consecutive loss - as it was hit by legacy issues. RBS reported a loss of £6.96bn for 2016, bigger than the £1.98bn the year before, as it was faced with litigation and conduct costs of £5.9bn. This includes a £3.1bn provision in relation to the mis-selling of mortgage-backed securities in the US in the run-up to the financial crisis.
Meanwhile, the bank also booked £2.1bn in restructuring costs, compared to £2.9bn the year before.
Standard Chartered was also under the cosh after the bank said operating income dropped in 2016 and held off from paying a dividend, but reported better underlying profits.
Peer Barclays followed suit, falling into the red.
Miners were among the worst performers, with Glencore, Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton, Antofagasta and Anglo American all in the red. Traders pointed to a rotation out of cyclicals into defensives and to profit taking now that all the big names in the sector have reported.
On the upside, education publisher Pearson, which issued a profit warning in January, rallied after it held its dividend steady as full year pre-tax losses widened to £2.5bn from £433m in 2015.
British Airways and Iberia parent International Consolidated Airlines Group flew higher after it announced a new share buyback and reported improved profits in the fourth quarter of last year and guidance for continued improvement in 2017. EasyJet also made gains.
Risers
Pearson (PSON) 671.00p 3.87%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 515.50p 2.18%
easyJet (EZJ) 927.00p 1.37%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 882.00p 0.80%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 7,309.00p 0.77%
Provident Financial (PFG) 2,912.00p 0.73%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,083.00p 0.73%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 970.50p 0.62%
Direct Line Insurance Group (DLG) 364.90p 0.55%
Royal Mail (RMG) 409.30p 0.49%
Fallers
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 236.60p -5.13%
Glencore (GLEN) 317.65p -4.13%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,280.00p -4.04%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,299.00p -3.60%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,625.00p -3.45%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 725.20p -3.44%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 798.00p -3.21%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,236.50p -2.60%
CRH (CRH) 2,627.00p -2.52%
Barclays (BARC) 223.60p -2.38%