By Carla Mozee and Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

U.K. blue-chip stocks moved higher Friday, as investors snapped up shares that had been beaten down earlier this week in part by worries about a potential global trade war.

Home builders were hit after Berkeley Group Holdings PLC, one of Britain's biggest developers, offered a downbeat view of the market.

How markets are moving

The FTSE 100 index was up 0.2% at 7,153.51, after opening slightly in the red. The basic materials group led advancers while the tech and industrial groups fell. On Thursday, the index rose 0.1% (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ftse-100-edges-up-after-string-of-losses-but-unilever-falls-after-london-hq-news-2018-03-15), it's first rise after three losing sessions.

The pound bought $1.3973, up from $1.3936 late Thursday in New York.

What's driving markets

Investors appeared in the mood to end the week on an upbeat note, shrugging off concerns over more instability in the U.S. administration. Media reports said President Donald Trump was planning to sack his national security adviser H.R. McMaster, which would be the second high-profile firing from the White House this week. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was fired on Tuesday and replaced with CIA Director Mike Pompeo.

The FTSE, however, was still on track to end the week with a 1% loss after being pulled sharply lower on Tuesday on concerns that U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum would spur retaliatory measures from other countries. The White House said it will seek to trim the U.S.'s trade deficit with China by $100 billion, using tariffs. The European Union, meanwhile, was working to get the bloc exempt from the tariffs.

Stock movers

Berkeley Group Holdings PLC (BKG.LN) dropped 5.3% as the home builder said while trading conditions in London and the southeast of the U.K. remain stable it doesn't plan to step up building. (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/berkeley-projects-no-increase-in-production-2018-03-16)

"The operating environment and its impact on transaction volumes, whilst sufficient for the business plan and five-year profit guidance period that ends at 30 April 2021, do not support the step-up in Berkeley's production levels that these markets so badly need," said Berkeley.

Shares of other home builders fell. Taylor Wimpey PLC (TW.LN) dropped 1.4% and Persimmon PLC (PSN.LN) gave up 1.2%.

Among advancers, tobacco producer Imperial Brands PLC (IMBBY) was up 0.9%, airline easyJet PLC (EZJ.LN) picked up 1.3% and lender Barclays PLC (BCS) rose 0.9%.

Off the FTSE 100, NEX Group PLC (NXG.LN) rallied 34% to GBP8.99 after confirming that it's received a preliminary takeover approach from CME Group Inc (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/nex-confirms-takeover-approach-by-cme-2018-03-16). (CME) .

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 16, 2018 06:11 ET (10:11 GMT)

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