London open: Stocks rise as investors eye payrolls report
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Friday 05 Jun 2020
(Sharecast News) - London stocks rose in early trade on Friday following losses in the previous session, as investors eyed the latest US non-farm payrolls report.
At 0830 BST, the FTSE 100 was up 0.8% at 6,389.72.
Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell said: "Europe got back on the horse on Friday, resuming a June rally that paused momentarily yesterday ahead of this afternoon's likely shocking non-farm jobs report.
"Analysts are expecting the headline figure to show that a further 7.75 million jobs were lost last month, an estimate that is already lower than the initial 9 million-plus assessment thanks to Wednesday's far better than forecast ADP reading.
"It bears repeating that it is insane that such a high figure could draw market-relief, but then, we are in unprecedented times, and investors have quickly adapted to this new normal."
The payrolls report, unemployment rate and average earnings are due at 1330 BST.
On home shores, the latest survey from GfK showed consumer confidence fell in May to its worst level since January 2009 as the Covid-19 pandemic continued to weigh.
A "flash" report by GfK using data gathered between 20 and 26 May showed the long-running consumer confidence index fell by two points to -36, with four out of five of the measures that make up the index down. This was just three points below the historic low of -39 in July 2008.
Joe Staton, client strategy director at GfK, said: "Against a backdrop of falling house prices, soaring jobless claims, and with no sign of a rapid V-shaped bounce-back on the cards, consumers remain pessimistic about the state of their finances and the wider economic picture for the year to come.
"The only bright spark in the numbers is for the major purchase index with a six-point fillip, pointing to latent demand among shoppers across the UK despite most outlets remaining shuttered. As the lockdown eases, it will be interesting to see just how the consumer appetite for spending returns in a world of socially-distanced shopping and the seismic shift to online retailing - alongside worries of a fresh spike in Covid-19 cases as relaxations increase."
In equity markets, airlines were the standout gainers, with budget offering easyJet and British Airways and Iberia parent IAG both sharply higher.
Cruise operator Carnival also rallied, along with Premier Inn owner Whitbread.
Elsewhere, Virgin Money rose after it and Aberdeen Asset Management agreed to provide up to £12.5m each of extra funding for their asset management joint venture.
Waste management company Biffa was in the red after its full-year results, while luxury fashion brand Burberry was a little weaker after a downgrade to 'sell' at Goldman Sachs.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 6,389.72 0.76%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 18,020.43 1.09%
techMARK (TASX) 3,831.09 0.44%
FTSE 100 - Risers
easyJet (EZJ) 914.60p 9.80%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 313.10p 8.64%
Carnival (CCL) 1,263.50p 5.78%
M&G (MNG) 156.75p 3.98%
Whitbread (WTB) 2,625.00p 3.96%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 336.00p 3.70%
Glencore (GLEN) 175.18p 3.56%
Meggitt (MGGT) 351.00p 3.36%
Standard Life Aberdeen (SLA) 275.50p 3.26%
Aviva (AV.) 290.10p 3.17%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Pennon Group (PNN) 1,115.00p -1.68%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 6,936.00p -1.45%
Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,674.00p -1.09%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 485.30p -0.96%
Experian (EXPN) 2,887.00p -0.93%
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,636.60p -0.88%
Auto Trader Group (AUTO) 561.40p -0.81%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,628.00p -0.73%
Spirax-Sarco Engineering (SPX) 9,952.00p -0.73%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,373.00p -0.61%
FTSE 250 - Risers
St. Modwen Properties (SMP) 391.50p 6.53%
Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 209.00p 5.77%
Morgan Advanced Materials (MGAM) 248.50p 5.74%
Virgin Money UK (VMUK) 106.20p 4.58%
Bakkavor Group (BAKK) 82.60p 4.56%
Bank of Georgia Group (BGEO) 1,060.00p 4.54%
Fisher (James) & Sons (FSJ) 1,334.00p 4.38%
Micro Focus International (MCRO) 496.10p 4.35%
WH Smith (SMWH) 1,223.00p 4.26%
4Imprint Group (FOUR) 2,665.00p 4.10%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 458.90p -7.67%
Biffa (BIFF) 249.00p -5.14%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 276.00p -2.99%
Energean (ENOG) 526.00p -2.95%
TR Property Inv Trust (TRY) 370.00p -2.25%
Plus500 Ltd (DI) (PLUS) 1,271.00p -1.17%
HarbourVest Global Private Equity Limited A Shs (HVPE) 1,474.00p -0.94%
Ibstock (IBST) 201.20p -0.59%
Softcat (SCT) 1,104.00p -0.54%
Renishaw (RSW) 4,084.00p -0.49%
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