UK FTSE 100 Edges Up as Bank Stocks Lead Gains and Oil Prices Hold Steady
FTSE 100 Market Overview and Sector Performance
Sept 23 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 inched higher on Wednesday, with heavyweight banks stocks leading gains as focus remained on any developments regarding a Middle East peace deal while crude oil prices were held near a recent low.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index rose 0.17% to 10,726.56 points by 0946 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 slipped 0.24%.
Global Political Developments and Oil Prices
- US-Iran Tensions: US President Donald Trump said talks with Iran in New York had made progress, but then threatened to "annihilate" the country if a deal was not reached.
- Oil Market Dynamics: Oil prices meanwhile held near their lowest in more than two weeks, kept in check by improving Gulf crude supplies and growing hopes for a diplomatic resolution to the US-Israeli war on Iran. UK's energy sector however climbed 0.8%.
Sector Highlights
Banking Sector Recovery
- Heavyweight banks rebounded after falling over 1% in the last session with HSBC and Standard Chartered adding 0.9% and 1.3% respectively.
Pharmaceuticals and Engineering
- Pharma stocks were a drag, down 0.9% with FTSE heavyweight AstraZeneca down 1.1%.
- British engineering firm Renishaw rose 3.7% to a more than five-year high after reporting better-than-expected annual adjusted pretax profit.
Retail and Clean Energy
- JD Sports slid 3.8% after the Sports and fashion retailer reported a 19.7% drop in first-half profit, hurt by weakness in its key North American market, becoming the top loser in the index.
- Clean energy technology developer Ceres Power gained 1.7% after it posts a 8% growth in half-year revenue from a year ago.
Private Capital and Asset Management
- Pollen Street has explored options, including a potential sale, as the London-listed private capital firm looks to scale up its asset management business, two sources said to Reuters. Pollen Street surged 17.1%, becoming the top gainer in the mid-cap index.
Macroeconomic Indicators
Business Activity and Inflation
- A survey showed that growth in British business activity cooled this month and inflation pressure built, an awkward backdrop for finance minister John Healey ahead of his first budget next month.
Interest Rate Outlook
- Financial markets pointed to a more than 66% chance that the Bank of England will raise interest rates on November, the week after Healey delivers his October budget.
Reporting and Editorial
(Reporting by Anand Gopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)
