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* FTSE 100 down 0.2%, FTSE 250 down 0.8%
* PM Johnson stokes hard Brexit fears
* Unilever biggest blue-chip decliner
* Boeing suppliers, airlines slip after 737 MAX suspension
Dec 17 (Reuters) - UK firms more exposed to the domestic economy took a hit on Tuesday after reports that Prime Minister Boris Johnson will pass a law that could re-ignite fears of a hard Brexit, while Unilever slipped 5% after cutting its 2019 sales growth view.
Johnson is likely to block the extension of a Brexit transition deal with the European Union beyond 2020. That pushed the FTSE 100 0.2% lower, with banks such as Lloyds and housebuilders dragging the most.
The midcap FTSE 250, whose components generate most of their earnings at home, fared worse and gave up 0.8%. The index had hit successive all-time highs in the last two sessions after Johnson’s election victory seemingly cleared a path for Brexit.
Shares of Boeing suppliers as well as those of airlines skidded after the U.S. company suspended production of its 737 MAX jetliner. Senior Plc fell 4%, while British Airways owner IAG dipped 2.6%. (Reporting by Shashwat Awasthi in Bengaluru Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)
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