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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: Stocks rise tentatively ahead of four-day weekend, M&S jumps Strong performances from Marks & Spencer and others in the retail sector pushed London stocks higher on Thursday ahead the four-day weekend. However, gains were only modest on the back of mixed economic data, UK political uncertainty and concerns over Greece.
The FTSE 100 was up 0.35% by the end of trade at 6,833.46. UK markets will not be open again until next Tuesday.
Analyst Alastair McCaig from IG said traders were "half-hearted" following a bullish first quarter and ahead of the Easter break. "The ubiquitous mention of Greece and its travails surrounding austerity has hung around the markets again today," he said.
Athens submitted a new proposal of economic reforms overnight "which is more specific and quantified", according to the Greek finance ministry. The 26-page document suggests that Greece could raise as much as €6bn this year as it looks to unlock €7.2bn in bailout funds before it runs out of money.
Nevertheless, EU officials claimed the new list still needs more work and a deal is not expected before the next meeting of Eurozone finance ministers on 24 April.
Investors were also waiting to hear from the leaders of the seven top political parties in the UK who are due battle it out in a live, televised debate on Thursday evening in the run-up to the general election in May.
Political uncertainty was cited as one of the reasons why growth in the British construction industry slowed down in March as companies delayed spending decisions, leading to employment figures rising at their slowest pace since December 2013.
The monthly Markit/CIPS UK construction purchasing managers' index released Thursday morning declined 2.3 points in March to 57.8, having reached a four-month high in February, and remained below 61.8, the average for 2014 as a whole.
Wall Street stocks were swinging between gains and losses after the opening bell despite a batch of strong economic data, with jobless claims falling to a nine-week low last week and the US deficit shrinking 16.9% in February.
Investors were treading cautiously ahead of the release of the US non-farm payrolls report on Friday, with the New York Stock Exchange closed. "The absence of this volatility catalyst in openly traded equity markets has thrown traders," McCaig said.
M&S in fashion in Q4
Marks & Spencer delivered its first growth from clothing and general merchandise (GM) for 14 quarters, with like-for-like sales unexpectedly rising 0.7% in both clothing and food. The market had been expecting GM sales to fall and food to be flattish. Shares were up 6%.
A host of other retailers such as Next, Home Retail, Debenhams, Mothercare, Ted Baker and French Connection were also making gains.
UK homewares retailer Dunelm was higher as it delivered a upbeat outlook after increasing sales by 10.7% in the third quarter, though growth did tail off slightly from the first half.
Food wholesale retailer Booker also rose after saying it had a "good end to a good year" with a 1% rise in fourth-quarter sales despite ongoing price deflation, as its chairman announced his resignation.
The price of iron ore on Thursday plunged below $50 per metric tonne for the first time in over 10 years, sending shares in diversified heavyweights BHP Billiton, Glencore and Anglo American into the red.
Playtech's first move into the financial trading market was welcomed by investors as the online gaming group agreed to acquire forex and CFD provider company TradeFX, owner of the markets.com website, for up to €458m.
Ingredient and beverage provider Tate & Lyle was higher after reiterating guidance for the current financial year, saying that it expected profit to be lower than initial estimates.
Market Movers
techMARK 3,162.92 +0.61%
FTSE 100 6,833.46 +0.35%
FTSE 250 17,268.83 +0.85% |
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| | FTSE 100 - Risers
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,279.00p +4.66%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 554.00p +4.43%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,195.00p +3.00%
Imperial Tobacco Group (IMT) 3,131.00p +2.82%
Weir Group (WEIR) 1,737.00p +2.48%
Barclays (BARC) 254.75p +2.19%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,866.00p +1.78%
WPP (WPP) 1,539.00p +1.72%
Carnival (CCL) 3,310.00p +1.60%
Unilever (ULVR) 2,856.00p +1.53%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,431.50p -2.62%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 718.00p -2.11%
Anglo American (AAL) 997.00p -1.92%
Shire Plc (SHP) 5,160.00p -1.90%
easyJet (EZJ) 1,844.00p -1.50%
Kingfisher (KGF) 362.80p -1.41%
Fresnillo (FRES) 691.50p -1.21%
Glencore (GLEN) 280.75p -1.18%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,715.00p -0.92%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 943.50p -0.68%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Telecom Plus (TEP) 932.50p +4.89%
BTG (BTG) 773.00p +4.81%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 59.30p +4.77%
Booker Group (BOK) 148.90p +4.56%
Cranswick (CWK) 1,424.00p +4.48%
Zoopla Property Group (WI) (ZPLA) 189.90p +4.17%
Brewin Dolphin Holdings (BRW) 319.90p +3.86%
Euromoney Institutional Investor (ERM) 1,142.00p +3.82%
Entertainment One Limited (ETO) 312.10p +3.79%
Rathbone Brothers (RAT) 2,124.00p +3.56%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Electrocomponents (ECM) 232.80p -3.56%
Vedanta Resources (VED) 479.20p -3.35%
Evraz (EVR) 191.40p -3.09%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 470.50p -2.99%
John Laing Infrastructure Fund Ltd (JLIF) 123.40p -2.68%
Infinis Energy (INFI) 182.00p -2.15%
Betfair Group (BET) 2,194.00p -2.10%
Lonmin (LMI) 118.00p -1.83%
Ladbrokes (LAD) 102.40p -1.73% |
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| | Europe Market Report | | | | FTSE 100 | Euronext | Dax perf | CAC 40 |  | | | | | | Europe close: Shares little changed after US data European shares were little changed after better-than-expected US data on weekly jobless claims and factory orders.
Initial jobless claims in the week to 28 March rose 268,000, compared to a revised 288,000 the previous week. Analysts had predicted 285,000 claims. The report comes ahead of the non-farm payrolls data on Friday, closely followed by the market to gauge the health of the labour market. The Federal Reserve is keeping a watch on the jobs market to determine the timing of the first interest rate hike.
US factory orders increased 0.2% in February, ahead of the 0.4% drop forecast by analysts and compared to the previous month's 0.7% fall.
In the UK, the Markit/CIPS purchasing managers' index for construction activity fell to 57.8 in March from 60.1 a month earlier, compared to forecasts for a reading of 57.8. Nonetheless it remains above the 50 level that signals expansion.
Greek debt negotiations
Greece has sent an updated list of reforms to appease international creditors in order to unlock further aid but Eurozone officials said more work was needed.
The European Central Bank has increased the Bank of Greece's emergency lending assistance capacity by another €700m, after €1.2bn last week.
Eurozone deputy finance ministers will meet on 8 and 9 April, Germany's representation in Brussels said on Thursday.
The euro rose 1.03% to $1.0874.
Companies: Deutsche Lufthansa, Royal KPN
Deutsche Lufthansa AG slumped after Barclays reduced its rating on the airline to 'equal weight' from 'overweight'.
Royal KPN rallied after saying it has had interest from several parties about the purchase of Base, its Belgian mobile phone business.
A measure of mining stocks fell, including BHP Billiton and Glencore, after lacklustre Chinese manufacturing data on Wednesday dented overnight confidence in copper, while iron ore prices weakened.
Marks & Spencer rose to lead retailers higher after reporting an unexpected increase in general merchandise for the first time since 2011. |
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| | US Market Report | | US open: Dow and S&P advance as trade deficit shrinks US stocks advanced on Thursday, reversing pre-market losses as investors digested reports on weekly jobless claims and international trade. Just after 10:00 in New York, the Dow Jones was up 0.48%, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq gained 0.57% and 0.38% respectively.
Thursday's US data included an improvement in initial jobless claims fell by 20,000 to a seasonally adjusted 268,000 in the seven days stretching from March 22 to March 28, the second lowest amount since the recession ended.
"Today's US unemployment claims are the unsatisfying filling between the two meaty employment data points of ADP payrolls yesterday and non-farms tomorrow, so we could well see a further struggle for direction going on in the US," said IG market analyst Chris Beauchamp.
Meanwhile a Commerce Department update showed the US trade deficit declined 17% in February to the lowest level since 2009, mostly due to cheaper oil and a stronger dollar hitting exports.
The deficit shrank $7.2bn to $35.4bn in February from a revised $42.7bn in January.
"These better-than-expected numbers tie into the narrative of an improving US economy, and the prospect of a rate hike sooner rather than later, however the improvement in the trade deficit was caused by a sharp drop in imports, which might suggest a falloff in demand," said CMC Markets' analyst Michael Hewson.
In company news, Kraft Foods Group fell 0.39% after being accused of manipulating and trying to manipulate the prices of cash wheat and wheat futures.
However, Mondelez International edged forward 0.76% despite being charged for the same offence, while CarMax surged forward 8.44% after reporting that its fourth-quarter profits jumped 44%.
Restaurant chains operator Denny's Corp rose 4.52% after announcing its board of directors had authorized an additional $100m stock buyback plan.
The dollar was stable against the pound and gained 0.17% against the yen but fell almost 1% against the euro, while gold futures slipped 0.38% to $1,203.50. |
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| | Broker Tips | | Broker tips: M&S, Persimmon, JD Wetherspoon Shore Capital has maintained a 'hold' rating on Marks & Spencer but has hailed the retailer's latest trading update, which showed an unexpected return to growth in general merchandise sales in the fourth quarter. "At this juncture we believe it is wise for us to watch and wait to see if there is a follow-through on the improving GM trends at M&S, noting favourable multi-year comparatives, before we allow ourselves to be demonstrably more assertive with respect to our current 'hold' recommendation on the stock," the broker said.
After a strong run in Persimmon's share price, UBS has downgraded its rating on the housebuilder from 'buy' to 'neutral'.
With the shares trading at 11.5 times estimated earnings for 2015 (a 15% premium to the sector) and a 2.5 times tangible net asset value (a 40% premium), the bank said: "We do not see sufficient upside to the shares". However, it did predict that Persimmon has the potential to accelerate its capital return plan to investors.
Canaccord Genuity has decided to retain its 'hold' stance on pub operator JD Wetherspoon after putting it under review, but lowered its target for the share price from 800p to 750p. | | |
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