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UK stocks ended Monday effectively flat as traders digested the government's plans to reopen the economy.
The threat of a second wave of infections in reopening countries like Germany, South Korea and China also weighed on investors' minds.
The benchmark FTSE 100 index closed just 0.063%, or 3.75 points, higher to 5,939.73.
LARGE AND MID CAP RISERS AND FALLERS
Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca gained 1.73% to £87.07 after an ovarian cancer treatment it developed with Merck was approved for use in the US.
Plastics manufacturer Victrex shed 1.32% to £19.47 as it booked a 1% fall in first-half profit and scrapped its interim dividend after rising sales were offset by margin pressure.
Victrex said it had made a 'solid start' to the second half, but was seeing 'emerging headwinds' in its forward order book due to the coronavirus crisis.
Budget airline EasyJet fell 5.9% to 500p after reports emerged over the weekend that it may need to raise anywhere between £700m and £1bn in cash through a rights issue.
Citigroup analyst Mark Manduca reportedly told institutional clients there was a 'high probability' that EasyJet will have to tap investors for money by issuing shares in the next few months.
Healthcare facility investor Primary Health Properties rose 1% to 158.6p, having acquired a portfolio of 20 medical centres in England and Wales for £47.1m and reporting 'robust' rent collection across its portfolio.
Automotive fluid system supplier TI Fluid Systems gained 3.17% to 176p on announcing that it would pay its 2019 final dividend as planned, despite its revenue slipping in the first quarter.
SMALL CAP RISERS AND FALLERS
Funeral operator Dignity added 0.21% to 234.5p, even as it reported a fall in profit that it pinned on operational impacts from the coronavirus pandemic.
Dignity is also expecting a rise in deaths related to the respiratory disease to keep it busy this year.
Cream cakes retailer Cake Box increased 2.3% to 156p on announcing that it expected to have all its high-street shops open by early June.
Consultancy company Science Group plunged 7.1% to 190.4p, having decided to not recommend a dividend at its upcoming annual general meeting.
Science Group said payment of an interim dividend would be considered later in the year if appropriate.
Regenerative medicine company Tissue Regenix soared 57.78% to 1.06p on news that it had inked a manufacturing pact to develop a new product line that addresses orthopaedic soft tissue repairs.
Property investor RDI REIT dropped 5.59% to 49p as it swung to a first-half loss and scrapped its interim dividend amid falls in rental income and the market value of its portfolio.
Marketing services group XLMedia added 3.75% to 24.9p on announcing that it would reduce its headcount as part of a strategy overhaul.
XL Media did not specify how many jobs would be cut, only saying that the measures were expected to generate more than $5m of annualised savings.
