London midday: FTSE a touch higher; Trump inauguration in focus
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Monday 20 Jan 2025
(Sharecast News) - London stocks were still a touch firmer by midday on Monday, having a hit record high at the end of last week, as investors mulled the latest UK house price data and awaited Donald Trump's inauguration as the 47th US president.
The FTSE 100 was up 0.1% at 8,514.55 , having closed 1.4% firmer on Friday at a record high of 8,505.22. US markets will be closed for Martin Luther King Jr Day.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "Markets are eagerly awaiting Trump's first batch of executive orders as this will provide clarity on the lay of the land. Immigration, energy and trade will be high up the list and, as always, the devil will be in the detail. Trump has had a lot to say on these issues but he also has a reputation of not always following what he's promised to do to the letter.
"Markets want to know which countries and industry sectors will be targeted and the relevant tariff rates to price in any risks or opportunities to equities, currencies and bonds around the world.
"Trump is likely to have a much greater influence on markets than Joe Biden due to his punchier policies and unpredictable nature. Investors should strap themselves in, as this situation implies much greater swings up and down for share prices, currencies and other asset classes.
"Pending more information on how Trump plans to achieve policy goals, certain investors have focused on the here and now, and that's a world in which the new president embraces cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin has gone bananas after Trump launched his own cryptocurrency on Friday. It's got crypto fans fired up in hope that digital currencies will go mainstream."
On home shores, data released by Rightmove showed the average price of a property coming to market rose by 1.7% in January to £366,189 - the largest increase in prices at the start of the year since 2020.
A record number of early-bird new sellers came to market since Boxing Day, the property portal said.
This meant that buyers had the highest level of choice at the start of a year since 2015, which has also contributed to an encouraging start to 2025 buyer activity.
The number of new properties coming to market was up 11% on the same start-of-the-year period last year.
The number of buyers contacting agents about properties for sale since Boxing Day was 9% higher, and the number of sales being agreed over the same period was up 11%
Nevertheless, new seller asking prices are still nearly £9,000 lower than May 2024's record, reflecting buyer affordability constraints.
Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove, said: "New sellers have started the year with a bang, with a record number coming to market not only on Boxing Day itself, but across the start of the year to date. We've also seen a strong start to the year in new seller asking prices, though given the higher-than-anticipated seller competition, we would expect this to slow down over the next few months. The record number of sellers we're seeing is a double-edged sword.
"It's encouraging to see so many sellers with the confidence to come to market, providing buyers with fresh choice. However, with lots of homes for buyers to consider, sellers will need to work even harder to stand out from the crowd and attract a buyer. This could be with a tempting asking price, standout home features, immaculate presentation of the home, or a combination of all of these. It's vital that in a competitive market, sellers take on the recommendations of their agent, particularly when it comes to setting a realistic price."
In equity markets, Wood Group gained after it won a contract to provide long-term maintenance for Esso's onshore and offshore assets in Australia's Gippsland Basin.
Ladbrokes owner Entain fell following a report that the Financial Reporting Council has begun an investigation into KPMG's audit of the company for the year ended December 2022.
Train ticketing app Trainline slumped following a report that expanding contactless train travel will be a priority of the UK's new publicly-owned rail company, Great British Railways. According to the i, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander will make fare and ticketing reform one of her key four priorities for GBR, including the expansion of pay as you go.
In broker note action, National Grid was boosted by an upgrade to 'buy' from 'neutral' at Citi, while Pets at Home benefited from an upgrade to 'buy' at Peel Hunt.
Spirax was in the black after an upgrade to 'buy' from 'hold' at Jefferies, but Smiths fell after a downgrade to 'hold' from 'buy' by the same outfit.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,514.55 0.11%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,472.60 -0.61%
techMARK (TASX) 4,685.65 -0.22%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (PSH) 4,324.00p 2.27%
Fresnillo (FRES) 678.50p 1.88%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 322.30p 1.51%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 575.40p 1.37%
Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 21,650.00p 1.36%
Smurfit Westrock (DI) (SWR) 4,399.00p 1.34%
Kingfisher (KGF) 245.50p 1.07%
St James's Place (STJ) 899.50p 1.07%
Rightmove (RMV) 664.20p 1.07%
Experian (EXPN) 3,767.00p 0.80%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Entain (ENT) 658.60p -1.64%
WPP (WPP) 736.80p -1.31%
British Land Company (BLND) 356.40p -1.27%
Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 422.20p -1.08%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,990.50p -1.07%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 382.40p -1.01%
Phoenix Group Holdings (PHNX) 501.00p -0.99%
LondonMetric Property (LMP) 181.70p -0.98%
SEGRO (SGRO) 710.60p -0.95%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,748.50p -0.88%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Indivior (INDV) 999.00p 4.55%
Wood Group (John) (WG.) 70.25p 2.70%
Mobico Group (MCG) 77.90p 1.56%
Spirent Communications (SPT) 178.60p 1.25%
SThree (STEM) 286.00p 1.24%
Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) (BPT) 362.80p 1.23%
Ashmore Group (ASHM) 155.60p 1.17%
Pets at Home Group (PETS) 209.00p 0.97%
PPHE Hotel Group Ltd (PPH) 1,315.00p 0.77%
Twentyfour Income Fund Limited Ord Red (TFIF) 106.80p 0.75%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Trainline (TRN) 383.40p -5.38%
Workspace Group (WKP) 463.00p -3.24%
Dr. Martens (DOCS) 68.15p -2.85%
Bakkavor Group (BAKK) 139.00p -2.80%
Savills (SVS) 1,024.00p -2.29%
Grainger (GRI) 215.50p -2.27%
Greggs (GRG) 2,184.00p -2.24%
Genus (GNS) 1,762.00p -2.22%
Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 422.80p -2.13%
Urban Logistics Reit (SHED) 103.20p -2.09%
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