LONDON: Britain’s Brexit-sensitive domestic stocks fell on Thursday as investors decided Prime Minister Theresa May’s victory in a leadership challenge clarified little in the country’s protracted divorce from the European Union.

The mid-cap FTSE 250 index ended the day down 0.8 per cent, giving up early gains as worries that a disorderly Brexit would hurt the economy returned. Half of mid-caps’ income is generated in the UK.

Weak results from retailers Sports Direct and Bonmarche also dragged the market down, denting investors’ appetite for stocks sensitive to slowing consumer spending.

The FTSE 100 ended the day flat with oil and consumer stocks lagging.

The possibility that Britain could quit the EU without an agreement kept many investors on the sidelines. Both the FTSE 100 and 250 are on track for their worst years in a decade.

May survived a no-confidence vote by the Conservative Party on Wednesday night, but more than a third of her lawmakers voted against her, suggesting parliament was heading towards deadlock over Brexit.

Published in Dawn, December 14th, 2018