By Johann M Cherian and Shashwat Chauhan
(Reuters) -British equities closed higher on Thursday as optimism grew around a nearing U.S. debt ceiling deal, while a tumble in BT Group and Burberry limited gains on the FTSE 100.
Britain’s largest broadband and mobile provider BT Group skidded 5.0% after the company said it will cut up to 55,000 jobs as it completes its fibre roll-out and adapts to new technologies such as AI.
“Telecoms appears to be awash with job cuts with Vodafone and BT reducing the size of their workforces,” said Victoria Scholar, head of investment at interactive investor.
“Both have been struggling with the pressures of inflation, most notably from energy.”
Vodafone Group said on Tuesday it would cut 11,000 jobs globally over three years.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 rose 0.3%, reflecting an upbeat mood in global markets on hopes that Washington is edging closer to a deal on the U.S. debt ceiling issue that would avert a default.
A media report quoted top U.S. congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy as saying the House could vote on a debt ceiling pact as soon as next week.
British banks <.FTNMX301010> rose 1.5%, while a softer pound also added to gains. [GBP/]
The midcap FTSE 250 added 0.4%, as Aston Martin surged 12.5% after the luxury carmaker said Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd would invest about 234 million pounds ($295.33 million).
The UK’s FTSE indexes have been trading in a tight range since late April as a mixed bag of corporate earnings and global angst over a possible U.S. debt default have weighed on sentiment.
Luxury group Burberry Group fell 5.2% as continued weakness in the United States overshadowed a stronger-than-expected fourth quarter sales driven by a rebound in China.
National Grid dipped 2.9% after the energy utility company said it expects fiscal 2024’s underlying earnings to be modestly below the year-ago level, after the UK government changed its capital allowance regime from April 1.
(Reporting by Johann M Cherian and Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; editing by Dhanya Ann Thoppil, Varun H K and Mark Heinrich)
