LONDON (ShareCast) - - Miners gain after China data
- HSBC beats forecasts with Q3 results
- Weir, Ryanair issue profit warnings
- ECB rate-cut speculation does the rounds
techMARK 2,651.30 -0.24%
FTSE 100 6,763.62 +0.43%
FTSE 250 15,503.06 +0.31%
Upbeat economic data from across the globe lifted the UK stock market on Monday with the heavyweight miners providing a lift after the outlook for China improved.
Better-than-expected third-quarter results from London’s largest stock by market capitalisation, HSBC, also helped to buoy the market today, along with speculation over a possible rate cut by the European Central Bank (ECB).
The FTSE 100 finished 28.88 points higher at 6.763.62, a gain of 0.43%.
Global economic data improves
Activity in China's services sector in October expanded at its fastest pace in the last year, reinforcing confidence that the world's largest economy is on a stable growth path. The non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose from 55.4 to 56.3 in last month.
Closer to home, the UK construction PMI rose to 59.4 in October, up from 58.9 in September and its highest level since September 2007. Meanwhile, business lobby group Confederation of British Industry also said it now predicts the economy will expand 1.4% this year and 2.4% in 2014, compared to the 1.2% and 2.3% projected in August.
The bullish mood was also lifted today by chatter around the possibility of an European Central Bank rate cut either this week or at its next meeting in December. However, Chief Economist Simon Smith from FxPro warned against such a move, saying that it would be “ineffective and do nothing to help tackling the disinflationary forces in the Eurozone”.
HSBC gains after Q3 beat
HSBC jumped after saying that underlying profit before tax totalled $5.06bn in the three months to September 30th, up 10% from $4.6bn the year before and ahead of forecasts. Underlying revenues were broadly unchanged at $15.6bn but were still better than analysts' estimates.
Mining stocks were also on the rise, buoyed by the upbeat outlook for top metals consumer China. Fresnillo, Rio Tinto, Antofagasta, Randgold, Anglo American and BHP Billiton were among the best performers.
Heading the other way was Weir Group after the engineering firm cut its full-year profit outlook due to the impact of the recent weakness in the US and Australian dollar. Numis reacted by downgrading its rating on the stock to 'add'.
Ryanair also surprised the market with a profit warning, saying that full-year profits will fall for the first time in five years as airfares drop in Europe due to fierce competition. Sector rivals easyJet and IAG also fell sharply following the announcement.
Utility peers SSE and Centrica were trading lower after analysts at Investec downgraded their ratings on both stocks to 'reduce' due to increased political risk. Severn Trent and United Utilities also finished the day in the red.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Fresnillo (FRES) 1,001.00p +4.54%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,289.50p +3.31%
CRH (CRH) 1,553.00p +3.19%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 863.50p +3.17%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,615.00p +2.40%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,494.50p +2.36%
HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 703.00p +2.28%
Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,087.00p +2.16%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,949.50p +1.59%
Shire Plc (SHP) 2,820.00p +1.51%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
easyJet (EZJ) 1,230.00p -5.09%
Weir Group (WEIR) 2,173.00p -3.68%
Meggitt (MGGT) 493.90p -2.97%
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 331.70p -2.44%
Severn Trent (SVT) 1,821.00p -2.15%
Aggreko (AGK) 1,551.00p -2.08%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 487.10p -1.54%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 692.00p -1.42%
Vodafone Group (VOD) 230.00p -1.08%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,768.00p -1.01%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Kenmare Resources (KMR) 21.86p +5.10%
Ted Baker (TED) 1,774.00p +4.97%
Evraz (EVR) 122.10p +4.63%
Diploma (DPLM) 721.00p +4.49%
Afren (AFR) 155.70p +3.80%
Fenner (FENR) 402.50p +3.23%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 189.30p +2.88%
Wetherspoon (J.D.) (JDW) 732.50p +2.81%
Supergroup (SGP) 1,169.00p +2.81%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 167.90p +2.75%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Synthomer (SYNT) 233.40p -3.75%
Thomas Cook Group (TCG) 139.50p -3.46%
Imagination Technologies Group (IMG) 261.40p -3.19%
PayPoint (PAY) 1,003.00p -2.81%
RPS Group (RPS) 288.90p -2.79%
IP Group (IPO) 147.00p -2.65%
Perform Group (PER) 545.50p -2.59%
Telecity Group (TCY) 740.00p -2.57%
Computacenter (CCC) 578.00p -2.36%
Rathbone Brothers (RAT) 1,572.00p -2.18%
BC
Email this article to a friend
or share it with one of these popular networks:
2,380.00p
Trade now with Barclays Stockbrokers
Update - 
