The UK’s midcap stocks ended higher on Thursday, rebounding from a more-than-eight-month low touched earlier in the session, as a sell-off in bond markets kept investors on edge, while retail stocks were hammered by disappointing Christmas trading updates. The British pound continued its slump.
US markets were closed on Thursday for a national day of mourning to mark the death of former president Jimmy Carter.
Dublin
The overall Iseq index was 0.09 per cent down on Thursday. Food supplier Kerry Group rose 0.97 per cent to €94.15 a share.
Ryanair rose 0.18 per cent to €19.00. Bank of Ireland increased by 0.14 per cent to €8.70. AIB dropped 1.17 per cent to €5.50. PTSB rose 2.17 per cent to €1.41 a share.
Home builders Cairn Homes fell 0.87 per cent to €2.27 and Glenveagh Properties increased by 2.53 per cent to €1.54. Kingspan dropped 1.55 per cent to €66.50. Dalata Hotels rose 0.89 per cent to €4.54 a share.
London
London’s FTSE 100 was up 0.8 per cent at a near four-week high on Thursday. The pound slid to its lowest for more than a year on Thursday, helping to push the FTSE 100 firmly higher.
Sterling continued its recent slump amid worries over UK borrowing costs, with the yield on 10-year government bonds dropping to its lowest level since the 2008 financial crisis.
Miners such as Antofagasta, Anglo American and Rio Tinto rose between 1.8 per cent and 3.3 per cent as metal prices edged higher.
Marks and Spencer reported a better-than-expected rise in like-for-like food sales in the Christmas trading period, but it warned of cost and economic headwinds this year, sending its shares down 8.4 per cent.
Tesco, Britain’s biggest supermarket group, dipped 0.5 per cent after it maintained its full-year profit outlook.
The retail index dropped 1.3 per cent to a near one-year low, with discount retailer B&M tumbling 8.5 per cent after it lowered the top end of its annual profit forecast.
Greggs Plc shed 15.8 per cent after the baker and food-to-go retailer reported a modest 2.5 per cent growth in fourth-quarter like-for-like sales, as tight-pursed Christmas shoppers indulged in fewer festive baked goods, sausage rolls and gingerbread lattes.
The FTSE 250 index of domestically oriented stocks closed up 0.3 per cent, having dropped as much as about 1 per cent during the session.
Midcap stocks have been pressured by a sharp rise in British borrowing costs this week on concerns about high borrowing in Britain and higher taxes on businesses planned by finance minister Rachel Reeves.
Europe
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index nudged up by 0.4 per cent, buoyed by a rally in the basic resources sector. The sector jumped 1.5 per cent and hit a three-week peak earlier in the session. It also logged its best day in a month.
The Cac 40 ended 0.51 per cent higher for the day and the Dax index was down 0.05 per cent.
Copper prices edged up by 0.5 per cent, further sweetening the gains. Healthcare stocks were the biggest boost to the benchmark index, rising 1 per cent.
Autos fell after China concluded its probe of the European Union’s Foreign Subsidies Regulation, saying it’s a barrier to trade and investment and paving the way for possible retaliation.
Concerns over rising inflation and slim chances of more interest rate cuts loomed large over the market. Investors were also on edge about how US president-elect Donald Trump might steer foreign and economic policy, especially with talks of a potential national economic emergency to justify universal tariffs. Such prospects have driven bond yields sky high globally.
With Trump’s January 20th inauguration on the horizon, investors are awaiting clarity on his protectionist rhetoric and its potential impact on Europe.
Euro-zone retail sales grew less than expected in November, confirming that consumption remains in the doldrums and adding to a string of gloomy data.
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