By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch
MADRID (MarketWatch) -- London stocks ended lower Monday, with
fears over Chinese growth driving losses for luxury-goods retailer
Burberry PLC and contributing to pressure on resource stocks,
including oil major BP PLC.
The FTSE 100 index fell 35.30 points, or 0.6%, to close at
5,627.33.
Data from China overnight showed inflation eased sharply in June
as food costs cooled and industrial demand eased off. Analysts are
concerned, though, about the threat of deflation. Resource stocks
are sensitive to economic news from China, which is a big user of
natural resources.
Heavyweight BP (BP) fell 1% and Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSA)
lost 1.7%. Tullow Oil PLC shed 1.9%.
Mining stocks also lost ground, with Anglo American PLC
stumbling 2.9% and Xstrata PLC dropping 2.2%.
Resource-oriented investors will be looking to the U.S.
earnings-season kickoff after the close of Wall Street trading
Monday, with aluminum producer Alcoa Inc. (AA) due to report.
Luxury-goods retailer Burberry fell 2.6%, in step with losses
for other companies in the sector across Europe.
China is also an important market for high-end goods. Investors
flagged an interview that Tan Li, vice president of Hengdeli
Holdings Ltd. , gave Bloomberg News, saying that sales of luxury
watches had slowed to "single digits in recent months."
Away from London's main index, shares of Michael Page
International PLC stumbled 3.8%. The recruiter cited difficult
market conditions in an update as well as a flat headcount.