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London stocks lose ground as pound rises on bets of bigger Fed rate cut



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FTSE 100 down 0.1%

Playtech leaps after hiking core profit forecast

Phoenix Group down on halting SunLife sale

Sept 16 (Reuters) -London's blue-chip stock index edged lower on Monday as a rising British pound weighed on export-oriented companies, while investors focussed on a week of key central bank rate decisions.

The benchmark FTSE 100 .FTSE was down 0.1% after notching its best week since mid-August on Friday as investors raised their bets of a more aggressive Federal Reserve rate cut on Wednesday.

Mid-cap .FTMC and small-cap stocks .FTSC shed 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively.

The pound GBP=D3 gained 0.3% to its highest in more than a week, while gold touched a record high.

However, UK miners .FTNMX551030 slipped 0.2%, after a 6.8% leap in the previous session, on downbeat industrial production data from top consumer China.

With global growth concerns back in focus, the week's key event is the Fed's rate decision, with the market weighing up the odds of a 25-basis-point cut versus a 50-bps cut.

After weeks of back-and-forth due to mixed economic data, traders now see a 61% chance of a heftier 50-bps cut, per the CME's FedWatch tool.

The Bank of England, which meets this Thursday, is expected to leave rates on hold and investors will primarily watch for clues on BoE's path for the rest of the year and updates on the pace of its bond sales. 0#BOEWATCH

Among stocks, insurer Phoenix Group PHNX.L fell 2.3%, most on the FTSE 100, after halting the sale process of its SunLife business.

Playtech PTEC.L jumped 8.5% after the gambling technology firm said it expects 2024 adjusted core profit to be slightly ahead of market expectations.



Reporting by Lisa Mattackal in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy

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