By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch Travel stocks gain as oil prices
march lower
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K. stocks dropped Friday, with oil and
gas issues extending losses after the Organization of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries's decision not to cut its oil-production
target.
The FTSE 100 fell 0.6% to 6,682.55, as the oil and gas group
slid 4%. The sector on Thursday tumbled 3.9% after OPEC said it
will maintain its current production target of 30 million barrels a
day. There had been some speculation in the markets ahead of OPEC's
meeting in Vienna that the cartel would reduce output, in an effort
to stop a recent drop in global oil prices.
U.S. crude-oil futures (CLF5) fell nearly 7% to trade below $69
a barrel, and Brent crude futures lost nearly 1%.
The selloff in oil stocks resumed Friday, pushing BG Group
shares down 5%. The oil-exploration company is also dealing with
pushback from some shareholders over its pay-and-bonus package plan
for incoming chief executive Helge Lund.
Shares of Tullow Oil PLC fell 3.3% and oil-services provider
Petrofac Ltd. gave up 2.5%. Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB) was down
2.5% and BP PLC (BP) lost 2.3%.
But travel-related stocks occupied the top spots among advancers
on the FTSE 100 as oil prices stretched declines. EasyJet PLC
climbed 4%, British Airways's parent International Consolidated
Airlines Group gained 1.5% and TUI Travel PLC gained 0.9%.
The FTSE 100 was on track for a 2% rise for the month. It would
be the first monthly rise after two months of losses.
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