BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - U.K. stocks held steady on Thursday as investors pinned hopes for progress in U.S.-China trade talks at the G20 summit and Boris Johnson, the favourite to succeed U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May, said that the chances of Britain leaving the European Union without a deal are 'a million-to-one'.
The British pound was unchanged against the dollar after Bank of England Governor Mark Carney told the U.K. Treasury Committee that the central bank would be more likely to cut interest rates in the event of a 'no-deal' Brexit.
The benchmark FTSE 100 was little changed at 7,410 in opening deals after closing down 0.1 percent on Wednesday.
Vodafone advanced 1.6 percent on reports it is set to secure EU antitrust approval for its $22 billion bid for Liberty Global's cable networks in central Europe.
Mingers Anglo American, Antofagasta and Glencore were moving higher after a report from the South China Morning Post said the U.S. and China had agreed to a tentative truce in their trade spat.
Home improvement retailer Kingfisher rallied 2.7 percent after it appointed Thierry Garnier as new chief executive officer, succeeding Véronique Laury.
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