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* FTSE 250 up 0.3%, FTSE 100 dips 0.1%
March 5 (Reuters) - British midcaps rose on Thursday, as
another dose of global central bank stimulus offered relief to
equity markets in the wake of the fast-spreading coronavirus
outbreak, while the export-laden FTSE 100 was pressured by a
stronger pound.
The mid-cap index .FTMC added 0.3%, led by gains for
Spirent Communications SPT.L after the telecoms firm reported
better-than-expected annual revenue and said it had not yet
assumed a hit to business from the epidemic. The IMF on Wednesday predicted global growth in 2020 would
mark its slowest pace since the 2008 financial crisis. It had
earlier estimated an increase of 3.3%. The blue-chip FTSE 100 .FTSE was down 0.1%. Miners BHP
Group BHPB.L and Rio Tinto RIO.L fell 3.4% and 4%,
respectively, in ex-dividend trading.