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| | London Market Report |  | | FTSE 100 | Euronext | Dax perf | CAC 40 |  |  |  |  | | Please click on the images to view our interactive charts | | | London close: Flat finish for FTSE after earlier gains - FTSE closes flat at 6,605.30
- Insurance stocks recover
- US 'core' durable goods orders fall
techMARK 2,782.65 +0.32%
FTSE 100 6,605.30 +0.01%
FTSE 250 16,252.92 +0.62%
It was a flat finish for the top tier index on Wednesday as investors balanced mixed US data, increased prospects of monetary easing in Europe and China, news out from Lloyds and the recovery of the insurance sector.
The FTSE 100 finished up 0.41 points at 6,605.30, a gain of 48.13 on the week so far.
There was considerable speculation that the People's Bank of China could introduce some form of stimulus into financial markets to prevent an economic slowdown, while comments from Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann were also lifting hopes that the European Central Bank could ease policy further to fight falling deflation in the Eurozone. He said that quantitative easing was "not out of the question".
There was also a notable lack of updates coming out from Russia and Ukraine throughout much of today's session, although towards the close a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Defense Ministry told Fox News the recent movements amongst Russian troops was "worrying", although he stressed there was insufficient information to back up claims troop numbers had been increased.
US 'core' durable goods orders decline in February
Orders for durable goods jumped by 2.2% in February to a seasonally adjusted $229.4bn, according to data from the Commerce Department, surprising analysts who had expected a rise of just 0.8%.
However, the positive surprise was mainly as a result of large increases in the volatile transportation sector. Excluding this, core durable goods orders rose by a more modest 0.2%, lower than the 0.3% gain expected by the market.
Standard Life rises on Ignis deal
Standard Life was making decent gains after agreeing on a deal with Phoenix Group to sell the latter's Ignis Asset Management division. Standard Life said the £390m acquisition will enhance earnings from the first full year of ownership. Hargreaves Lansdown also delivered a strong performance.
RSA is holding near the top of the leaderboard, part of the buying interest may be attributable to reports which have surfaced that it is looking for a buyer for its Lithuanian unit. Speculation puts the price tag at €100m.
Electricity provider SSE was in demand after unveiling plans to complete major disposals, freeze its household energy prices until 2016 and cut 500 jobs, as it confirmed results for 2013 would be broadly in line with expectations. Sector peer Centrica slumped on the news.
Banking stocks were also heavy fallers today with state-backed lender Lloyds leading the decline after the government sold another tranche of its stake. The disposal was made at a price of 75.5p per share, compared with last night's closing price of 79.11p.
On the second tier, Partnership Assurance rose strongly today as the annuity provider climbed alongside others in the sector following last week's major sell-off which came on the back of the government's decision to bin compulsory annuities for pensioners.
However, oil and gas firm Enquest slumped after it revealed the realised average price per barrel of oil sold last year decreased 1.7% to $109.7 and said profit from operations before tax and net finance costs dropped 7.5% to $374.8m, hit by a sharp rise in costs.
Looking ahead to tomorrow
On tomorrow's agenda is a report on UK retail sales which is expected to show a 2.9% year-on-year increase in February following a 4.8% rise a month earlier.
In the US, gross domestic product will be in focus and is tipped to register an annualised 2.7% growth in the fourth quarter, up from 2.4% the previous quarter. |
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FTSE 100 - Risers
Standard Life (SL.) 400.00p +7.01%
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,481.00p +5.33%
RSA Insurance Group (RSA) 87.80p +3.89%
Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 387.30p +3.72%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,425.00p +3.41%
William Hill (WMH) 348.70p +2.77%
Legal & General Group (LGEN) 214.80p +2.53%
Meggitt (MGGT) 480.50p +2.10%
Experian (EXPN) 1,074.00p +1.90%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 834.00p +1.89%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 75.20p -4.94%
Centrica (CNA) 323.10p -2.83%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,608.00p -2.17%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,077.00p -2.00%
Barclays (BARC) 233.30p -1.54%
BT Group (BT.A) 378.30p -1.48%
Severn Trent (SVT) 1,856.00p -1.43%
SABMiller (SAB) 2,938.00p -1.34%
Royal Mail (RMG) 558.00p -1.33%
Prudential (PRU) 1,314.00p -1.31%
FTSE 250 - Risers
888 Holdings (888) 158.50p +10.68%
Partnership Assurance Group (PA.) 134.00p +7.63%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 449.20p +4.90%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 150.30p +4.81%
Phoenix Group Holdings (DI) (PHNX) 741.50p +4.44%
FirstGroup (FGP) 144.40p +4.11%
Cairn Energy (CNE) 167.10p +3.85%
Barr (A.G.) (BAG) 616.50p +3.70%
Thomas Cook Group (TCG) 181.40p +3.54%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 1,314.00p +3.30%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
EnQuest (ENQ) 127.40p -11.65%
NMC Health (NMC) 505.00p -4.72%
Man Group (EMG) 99.05p -3.83%
Ted Baker (TED) 2,241.00p -3.41%
Infinis Energy (INFI) 236.00p -3.28%
Xaar (XAR) 831.50p -2.81%
ITE Group (ITE) 196.70p -2.62%
SEGRO (SGRO) 331.80p -2.44%
Euromoney Institutional Investor (ERM) 1,240.00p -2.21%
Daejan Holdings (DJAN) 4,775.00p -2.13% |
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| | Europe Market Report | | | | FTSE 100 | Euronext | Dax perf | CAC 40 |  | | | | | | Europe close: Upbeat US and German data lift stocks - ECB's Draghi addresses policy stance
- Fed's Bullard paints positive US outlook
- US durable goods orders rise
- German business confidence remains at seven-year high
FTSE 100: 0.01%
DAX: 1.18%
CAC 40: 0.94%
FTSE MIB: 1.37%
IBEX 35: 1.50%
Stoxx 600: 0.72%
European stocks gained following positive remarks from central bankers and the release of better-than-expected US and German data.
European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi said the benefits of accommodative monetary policy should be increasingly felt throughout the euro-area as the economy recovers.
Speaking in Paris yesterday, he reiterated the ECB stands ready to act if necessary should the euro-area take a turn for the worse amid risks of subdued prices.
ECB governing council member and Bundesbank chief Jens Weidmann also said yesterday that quantitative easing could not be ruled out to combat deflation.
The ECB will hold its policy meeting next week.
Markets were also reacting to comments from Federal Reserve official James Bullard, who said the US jobless rate will fall below 6% this year, compared with the 6.7% rate registered in February.
US durable goods, German business confidence
Orders for durable goods in the US jumped by 2.2% in February to a seasonally adjusted $229.4bn, according to data from the Commerce Department, surprising analysts who had expected a rise of just 0.8%.
German consumer confidence remained at a seven-year high, GfK revealed today. The forward-looking consumer sentiment indicator was 8.5 points in April, in line with March, when it reached its highest point since January 2007.
In Italy, ISTAT´s consumer confidence moved up in March to 101.7, after a print of 97.7 a month before.
Separately, the country´s statistics office revealed Italian retail sales were flat in seasonally adjusted terms in January.
Obama addresses Crimea crisis in Brussels
US President Barack Obama was due to speak in Brussels today, after the close of trading.
White House officials say Obama's address has taken on a renewed focus following Russia's annexation of Crimea in Ukraine.
The turmoil prompted the president's speechwriters to rewrite notes they had expected to focus on US-European relations.
Multimedia Polska plans biggest IPO since December
Multimedia Polska SA owners are looking to sell a 49% stake in Poland's third-biggest cable TV operator by the end of June. Multimedia will return to public trading after its owners delisted it from the Warsaw Stock Exchange in 2011. It would mark central Europe's largest initial public offering since December.
Standard Life was a top riser after agreeing to buy asset management business Ignis Asset Management for £390m.
Lloyds Banking Group declined after the UK government sold a stake in the lender.
Societe Generale edged higher after France's second largest bank said it has postponed a sale of additional Tier 1 bonds due to the "imminent publication" of a ratings report
Airbus Group gained after Les Echos reported it is extending its partnership with Aviation Industry Corporation of China.
Mediaset SpA advanced after the broadcaster, controlled by former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, posted a return to profit for 2013.
The euro dropped 0.29% to $1.3786.
Brent crude futures fell $0.225 to $106.750 per barrel in ICE trading. |
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| | US Market Report | | US open: Stocks rise as investors weigh mixed durable goods data - Durable goods orders jump, but investment falls
- Bullard sees jobless rate below six per cent by year-end
- Facebook gains on Oculus deal
- Candy Crush maker drops on debut
Dow Jones: 0.24%
Nasdaq: 0.29%
S&P 500: 0.29%
US stocks opened with modest gains on Wednesday despite data showing that spending on business investment fell for the fourth time in six months.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% in early trading, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 were both 0.3% higher.
Orders for durable goods jumped by 2.2% in February to a seasonally adjusted $229.4bn, according to data from the Commerce Department, surprising analysts who had expected a rise of just 0.8%.
However, the positive surprise was mainly as a result of large increases in the volatile transportation sector. Excluding this, core durable goods orders rose by a more modest 0.2%, lower than the 0.3% gain expected by the market.
As such, non-defence core capital goods orders excluding aircraft - seen as an important measure of business investment - actually dropped by 1.3% over the month; analysts had expected a 0.5% rise.
In other economic data, the Markit services purchasing managers' index rose to 55.5 in March, up from 53.3 the month before and ahead of the consensus forecast for 54.
Markets were also reacting to comments from a Federal Reserve official who said the US jobless rate will fall below 6% this year, compared with the 6.7% rate registered in February.
James Bullard, President of the St. Louis Fed, painted a bright outlook for the US economy despite weak data earlier in the year.
"The biggest thing is that unemployment has come down more quickly than expected," he said at the annual Credit Suisse investor conference in Hong Kong today. Bullard is not a voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee.
Facebook gains on Oculus deal
Facebook advanced as the social network group said it will spend $2bn to buy Oculus, which makes virtual-reality headsets.
Candy Crush maker King Digital Entertainment was making headlines today as it debuted on the stock market, falling sharply after the opening bell. The stock, which was priced at $22.50 yesterday opened around 9% lower at $20.50.
Endocyte declined after the biotechnology company said it will offer 4.5m shares to raise funds for working capital, research and development and clinical-trial costs.
Tesla Motors climbed as the Ohio Senate committee approved a bill that permits the company to operate retail stores.
The yield on a 10-year benchmark US Treasury was down two basis points at 2.73%.
West Texas Intermediate crude futures for May delivery was 0.58% higher at $99.77 a barrel. |
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| | Broker Tips | | Broker tips: Lloyds, RBS, Carnival... Investec has reiterated its 'buy' recommendation on Lloyds after the government sold a further tranche of shares in the state-backed lender on Wednesday.
The broker, which kept an 85p target for the shares, said that Lloyds offers "reasonable upside for a relatively low-risk stock". Analyst Ian Gordon believes that the market should begin to respond positively - "after the initial digestion" of the UKFI sale - to a sharp return in profit in the first quarter of 2014 and beyond.
Numis Securities has lowered its rating for Royal Bank of Scotland from 'add' to 'hold' and slashed its target from 374p to 300p.
Analyst Mike Trippitt said that while potential capital generation should provide some support to the shares, the stock's valuation "looks stretched". He applauded the company's "new direction of travel" but warned that the results of the turnaround will be "long-dated".
Panmure Gordon has maintained a 'sell' rating on cruise operator Carnival despite the company's first-quarter results coming in ahead of expected.
"Despite this improvement in first-quarter trading, the guidance range has only been narrowed with management still expecting a full-year net revenue yield decline, with costs slightly up year-on-year reflecting the significant capacity increase in the Caribbean, in addition to difficult trading in Japan," Panmure said.
After an impressive 272% outperformance of the FTSE 100 in the last four years, UBS has called time on shares of ITV, downgrading the stock from 'buy' to 'neutral'. The bank has cut its target for the stock from 230p to 210p.
"We have been positive on ITV through this time, however now feel that the market is pricing in much of the advertising recovery, Studios turnaround, balance sheet restructuring and some benefit from expansion in pay-tv, therefore we view continued outperformance is less likely," they said.
Oriel Securities is reviewing its recommendation on Carpetright after the floor covering retailer warned on annual profits.
Oriel said profits could recover materially in a short space of time, but added: "Risks to forecasts remain and our 'hold' stance is under review." | | |
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