UK Stocks Turning In Mixed Performance; FTSE 100 Up Marginally At Noon

RTTNews | 22 dias atrás
UK Stocks Turning In Mixed Performance; FTSE 100 Up Marginally At Noon

(RTTNews) - The U.K. market is up marginally around noon on Wednesday, extending is long winning streak, amid easing worries about trade tensions. Investors are also digesting a fresh batch of earnings updates, and data showing a bigger than expected drop in house prices.

China has reportedly compiled a list of U.S.-made goods exempt from its 125% tariffs - seeking to ease trade tensions without public concessions.

U.S. President Donald Trump said he believes the U.S. will have a deal with India on trade. The White House has also had "substantial talks" with Japan, and "the contours of a deal" with South Korea could be coming together, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.

The benchmark FTSE 100, moving in a tight band between 8,455.22 and 8,487.21, was up 11.98 points or 0.14% at 8,475.44 a few minutes before noon.

GSK is up almost 4%. The company reported higher first-quarter profit and sales, and lifted quarterly dividend. Looking ahead, the company said it is confident for delivery of fiscal 2025 guidance.

In the first quarter, GSK's profit before tax grew to 2.11 billion pounds from last year's 1.36 billion pounds. Profit attributable to shareholders increased to 1.62 billion pounds from prior year's 1.05 billion pounds. Earnings per share were 39.3 pence, higher than 25.4 pence last year.

Smith & Nephew is gaining nearly 7%. British American Tobacco, Coca-Cola HBC, Hikma Pharmaceuticals, Pershing Square Holdings, Spirax Group, Associated British Foods, SSE and Pearson are up 2 to 2.5%.

Schrodders, Convatec Group, Rentokil Initial, Diageo, Smiths Group, AstraZeneca, Imperial Brands, WPP, Diploma, Tesco, Vodafone Group and Intertek are also notably higher.

Glencore is down nearly 7%. Lloyds Banking Group, Antofagasta, Anglo American Plc., Natwest Group and HSBC Holdings are down 3 to 4%.

Rio Tinto, Prudential, Standard Chartered, Taylor Wimpey and Endeavour Mining are also down sharply.

Barclays is down 2%. Barclays reported that its first quarter profit before tax increased to 2.719 billion pounds from 2.277 billion pounds in the prior year.

Quarterly profit attributable to shareholders of the parent was 1.864 billion pounds or 13.0 pence per share up from 1.550 billion pounds or 10.3 pence per share in the prior year.

Haleon Plc shares are down 1.2%. The consumer healthcare company reported that first-quarter revenues declined 2.3% to 2.85 billion pounds from last year's 2.92 billion pounds.

On the economic front, UK house price declined more than expected in April following the end of stamp duty holidays, data from the Nationwide Building Society showed.

House prices logged a monthly drop of 0.6% after remaining flat in March. The decline was worse than economists' forecast of 0.1%. On a yearly basis, house price growth eased to 3.4% from 3.9% in the previous month. The expected rate of decline was 4.1%.

read more
U.S. Existing Home Sales Unexpectedly See Further Downside In April

U.S. Existing Home Sales Unexpectedly See Further Downside In April

Existing home sales in the U.S. unexpectedly saw further downside in the month of April, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors on Thursday. NAR said existing home sales fell by 0.5 percent to an annual rate of 4.00 million in April after plunging by 5.9 percent to a rate of 4.02 million in March.
RTTNews | 37 minutos atrás
U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Edge Down To 227,000

U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Edge Down To 227,000

A report released by the Labor Department on Thursday unexpectedly showed a slight decline by first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended May 17th. The Labor Department said initial jobless claims edged down to 227,000, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 229,000. The dip surprised economists, who had expected jobless claims to inch up to 230,000.
RTTNews | 1h 33min atrás
Euro Weakens After German Composite PMI Falls

Euro Weakens After German Composite PMI Falls

The euro weakened against other major currencies in the European session on Thursday, following the release of Germany's composite output index for May.
RTTNews | 2h 45min atrás
Bay Street Likely To Open On Weak Note

Bay Street Likely To Open On Weak Note

It's likely to be a weak start for stocks on Bay Street Thursday morning as investors may tread cautiously amid concerns about U.S. fiscal deficit, and continued uncertainty surrounding Trump administration's tariff moves. Weak crude oil and metal prices are likely to hurt as well.
RTTNews | 2h 50min atrás
FTSE 100 Notably Lower; Johnson Matthey Soars 32%

FTSE 100 Notably Lower; Johnson Matthey Soars 32%

U.K. stocks are down in negative territory on Thursday afternoon, in line with other major markets in Europe, as worries about U.S. fiscal deficit and rising bond yields weigh on equities. Investors, digesting the nation's economic data, are also awaiting more clarity on U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff plans.
RTTNews | 3h 16min atrás
Eurozone Private Sector Shrinks For First Time In 5 Months

Eurozone Private Sector Shrinks For First Time In 5 Months

The euro area private sector logged a renewed fall in May due to a sharp downturn in services activity, flash purchasing managers' survey compiled by S&P Global showed on Thursday. The flash composite output index fell to 49.5 in May from 50.4 in April. The score fell below the 50.0 no-change mark for the first time in five months.
RTTNews | 3h 27min atrás
Euro Falls Against Majors

Euro Falls Against Majors

The euro weakened against other major currencies in the Asian session on Thursday.
RTTNews | 3h 35min atrás