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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: UK stocks set a new record high despite growth concerns London's FTSE 100 surged to a new all-time high on Friday, topping a previous peak reached two weeks ago, despite concerns about a slowdown in UK economic growth. The Footsie finished 74.41 points higher, rising 1.06% to a fresh record of 7,089.77, helped by gains from Shire, Aberdeen, ITV and a host of housing stocks.
The index surpassed its previous intraday record high of 7,065.08 reached on 24 March.
"Equity markets certainly have that Friday feeling and as Greece works on its proposals for its creditors, traders climb aboard the bull-run bandwagon," said IG analyst David Madden. "The weakness in the euro is fuelling the spate of buying in Europe and that feel good factor is overflowing into the UK market."
Despite the strong performance on equity markets, currency markets were feeling the effects of political uncertainty, with the possibility of a Labour-SNP coalition weighing on sterling in the run-up to the elections.
The pound was down 0.7% against the dollar at 1.4643, nearing its lowest levels since 2010.
Also weighing on sterling was poor British economic data, with weak industrial production and construction output data for February missing forecasts, raising concerns about a slowdown in the first quarter.
On a positive note, NIESR's estimate for annualised UK gross domestic product growth for the first quarter held steady at 0.6%.
Housing stocks charge higher
Housebuilders were among the best performers as Jefferies upgraded ratings for stocks across the sector, including Barratt Developments, Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon, Bellway, Crest Nicholson and Redrow. Jefferies said it has turned more positive on the sector after recent data "point[ed] to a stronger pre-election housing market than we had anticipated".
UK pharma group Shire surged after the US drug regulator said it will fast-track the company's application for its 'Lifitegrast' dry-eye disease treatment.
Shares in Aberdeen Asset Management were up as traders linked a more bullish outlook for emerging markets being a driver behind the rally for asset managers who have significant exposure in Asian, African and Latin American assets.
ITV jumped after Morgan Stanley boosted the stock with its bullish view in a note to clients. "It is a key pick in the media sector," said the bank.
UK wine merchant Majestic Wine erased earlier losses as investors reacted to the announcement that it will buy Naked Wines for up to £70m in a reverse takeover. Investec upgraded the stock to 'buy' following the deal, saying it will open up the retailer's growth potential.
Recruiter Hays underwhelmed despite saying it now expects to deliver strong operating profit growth for the full year after a decent third quarter. Annual growth in net fees, however, eased to 5% from 6% in the first half.
Shares in Reckitt Benckiser rose after receiving a boost by analysts at UBS who upgraded their rating on the stock to 'buy' from 'hold'. The bank said Reckitt is "one of the two core holdings in the European household and personal care space."
Market Movers
techMARK 3,274.03 +1.21%
FTSE 100 7,089.77 +1.06%
FTSE 250 17,875.11 +0.90% |
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| | FTSE 100 - Risers
Shire Plc (SHP) 5,680.00p +4.80%
Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 507.50p +4.64%
ITV (ITV) 270.60p +3.56%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 558.00p +3.14%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 166.10p +3.04%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,880.00p +2.82%
Imperial Tobacco Group (IMT) 3,282.00p +2.66%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 975.00p +2.63%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 617.00p +2.58%
3i Group (III) 509.50p +2.56%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Kingfisher (KGF) 364.00p -0.84%
CRH (CRH) 1,797.00p -0.66%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 2,837.00p -0.54%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 79.30p -0.48%
Barclays (BARC) 257.05p -0.35%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 4,753.00p -0.24%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,022.00p -0.20%
Royal Mail (RMG) 450.00p -0.09%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Countrywide (CWD) 550.00p +5.67%
Soco International (SIA) 182.80p +5.66%
Indivior (INDV) 211.30p +5.39%
Lonmin (LMI) 130.00p +4.50%
Allied Minds (ALM) 725.00p +4.32%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 375.00p +3.85%
Tullow Oil (TLW) 331.10p +3.83%
Zoopla Property Group (WI) (ZPLA) 205.50p +3.79%
Evraz (EVR) 207.10p +3.55%
Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 454.00p +3.44%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Just Retirement Group (JRG) 168.00p -4.49%
Poundland Group (PLND) 330.00p -4.24%
Vedanta Resources (VED) 518.00p -3.90%
Nostrum Oil & Gas (NOG) 602.00p -2.51%
esure Group (ESUR) 214.00p -2.28%
Telecom Plus (TEP) 919.50p -1.87%
AA (AA.) 388.90p -1.57%
Spire Healthcare Group (SPI) 372.00p -1.48%
Entertainment One Limited (ETO) 317.80p -1.46% |
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| | Europe Market Report | | | | FTSE 100 | Euronext | Dax perf | CAC 40 |  | | | | | | Europe close: Stocks end session with sharp gains European stocks extended their gains on Friday as investors greeted renewed weakness in the euro. By the end of trading, the Stoxx Europe 600 index was up 0.92% to 412.93 points and remained on track to record its strongest week since late January after surpassing a 15-year high on Thursday.
The index had already risen 20% in 2015.
Germany's Dax was up 1.71%, while France's CAC 40 edged forward 0.60% and the pan-European FTSE Eurofirst 300 Index surged ahead to its highest level since 2000 as the euro hit its lowest level since March 19.
The single currency was again heading lower against the dollar, dropping 0.62% to reach 1.0597.
French industrial output in February was flat compared to the previous month, with falls in the production of electrical and agricultural goods offsetting increases in the energy and automotive sectors, statistics agency Insee said Friday.
The flat industrial production figure was slightly better than the 0.1% month-on-month forecast by economists.
"While retail sales have been dynamic, the investment recovery in France has not yet started," said BNP Paribas' Dominique Barbet.
On Thursday, Greece completed a €450m (£325m) payment to the International Monetary Fund, as Eurozone finance ministers gave Athens a six-day ultimatum to present a list of acceptable austerity reforms.
Even though Greece met the payment deadline, analysts remain sceptical over Athens' chances of solving its financial situation.
"It is becoming increasingly apparent that the gap between what Greece's creditors want, and what the Greek government is able to deliver, could well be too large a gap to bridge," said CMC Markets' analyst Michael Hewson.
On Friday, The Times reported that major Eurozone countries were secretly drawing up plans to rid the Eurozone of Greece as it faces bankruptcy.
In company news, Deutsche Bank advanecd 0.37% after reports suggested the bank was edging close to reach a settlement with US and UK authorities over an interest-rate manipulation probe.
According to sources cited by Bloomberg, the lender could pay a fine of over £1bn to settle the dispute. |
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| | US Market Report | | US open: Equities put on a lacklustre performance ahead of more Fedspeak Benchmark indices on Wall Street were putting in a lacklustre performance on Friday as market participants refrained from building risk exposure ahead of comments out of various Federal Reserve members during the session. At 1500 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.18% at 17,993 while the S&P500 rose slightly by 0.13% to 2095. Traders noted that stock markets were pulling back after the previous session's rally thanks to stronger-than-expected jobless claims.
At the same time, worries about rate hikes continue to linger. New York Fed President William Dudley noted last week that the pace of rate hikes will depend a lot on the reaction to the initial lift-off in financial markets.
"The upshot is that, while there is an awful lot of uncertainty surrounding the path of short rates, there is probably less uncertainty surrounding the path of long rates. The Fed will adjust the pace of its rate hikes to ensure that long-term yields rise, but not too rapidly," said Capital Economics, which expects the 10-year Treasury yield will rise gradually to 2.5% by end-2015 and to 3.0% by end-2016.
On Friday's session, attention will be on Richmond Fed head Jeffrey Lacker, a voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee who is giving his view on the economic outlook at an event in Florida.
After that, Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota, a non-voting member of the FOMC, will speak at the Minnesota Credit Union annual meeting in Bloomington, Minnesota.
Economic data on the table is rather scarce on Friday with only US import price data of note. The import price index fell by a seasonally adjusted 0.3% last month against consensus forecast of a 0.4% decline.
In company news, Shares in Apple fell after the opening bell as the tech giant inaugurated the pre-order period for its Apple Watch, which will hit the stores on 24 April. |
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| | Broker Tips | | Broker tips: Housing stocks, Reckitt Benckiser, Majestic Wine Housebuilders were putting in decent gains on Friday as Jefferies upgraded ratings for stocks across the sector after recent data pointed to a stronger pre-election housing market than anticipated.
The broker raised Bellway, Bovis Homes, Countrywide, Crest Nicholson, Redrow, Taylor Wimpey and Zoopla from 'hold' to 'buy'. Barratt Developments, Berkeley and Persimmon were lifted from 'underperform' to 'hold'.
Shares in Reckitt Benckiser rose after receiving a boost by analysts at UBS who upgraded their rating on the stock to 'buy' from 'hold'.
UBS analysts said that in a sector they have turned increasingly more cautious on, Reckitt Benckiser is the favourite pick, raising their target on the stock to 6505p from 5500p.
Majestic Wine's share price weakened on Friday after the announcement that it will buy rival Naked Wines for £70m, though analysts at Investec hailed the deal, saying it will open up the retailer's growth potential.
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