London open: FTSE steady after retail sales, borrowing data; StanChart surges
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Friday 21 Feb 2025
(Sharecast News) - London stocks were steady in early trade on Friday as investors mulled the latest retail sales and borrowing figures, but Standard Chartered surged after well-received results.
At 0825 GMT, the FTSE 100 was flat at 8,664.68
Data released earlier by the Office for National Statistics showed that January's monthly budget surplus was the biggest on record, although it still missed expectations.
Public finances recorded a £15.4bn surplus in January, up £800m on the previous year. This marked the highest figure for January since monthly records began in 1993.
Nevertheless, the figure was below the £20.5bn forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility and consensus forecasts of £18.8bn.
The ONS said combined self-assessed income and capital gains tax receipts were provisionally estimated at £36.2bn in January, up £3.8bn on the year and the highest January receipts since monthly records began in 1999.
Alex Kerr, UK economist at Capital Economics, said: "While January's disappointing public finances figures may not be as bad as they first appear, they continue the run of bad news for the Chancellor in 2025 and underline the difficult choices she faces.
"While there is increasing pressure on the government to commit to higher defence spending, the OBR is likely to conclude that the Chancellor's headroom against her fiscal rules has been wiped out and she will probably need to tighten fiscal policy as a result."
Separate figures from the ONS showed that retail sales bounced back more than expected last month.
Retail sales grew 1.7% on the month following four consecutive months of falls and after a downwardly-revised 0.6% drop in December. Economists were expecting a smaller increase of 0.3%.
The ONS said food store sales volumes grew strongly in January 2025, following falls in recent months.
More broadly, sales volumes declined by 0.6% in the three months to January 2025, compared with the three months to October 2024, but they were up 1.4% compared with the three months to January 2024.
Food stores sales volumes rose 5.6% on the month - the largest jump since March 2020.
Sales at non-food stores - the total of department, clothing, household and other non-food stores - fell 1.3%. Clothing retailers and household goods stores suggested the fall was due to reduced consumer confidence.
Paul Dales, chief UK economist at Capital Economics, said: "The 1.7% m/m leap in retail sales volumes in January (CE +1.0%, consensus +0.3%) suggests the retail sector shot out of the blocks at the start of the year.
"But some of that strength will have come at the expense of weakness in other parts of the economy. And with households in a fairly glum mood, we doubt it will last."
In equity markets, Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered surged to the top of the FTSE 100 as it said it would hand back $1.5bn to shareholders after a rise in annual earnings.
Pre-tax profits for 2024 came in at $6bn, up from $5.1bn a year earlier and slightly below average estimates of $6.2bn.
NatWest and Barclays were also higher.
Ferrexpo gained sharply, having tumbled late on Thursday after Ukrainian officials said they planned to nationalise the company's Poltava mining and processing plant amid allegations of illegal mining and fund misappropriation.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,664.68 0.02%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,649.01 0.18%
techMARK (TASX) 4,712.37 -0.01%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,195.00p 4.61%
NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 443.60p 1.72%
Centrica (CNA) 145.70p 1.71%
Diageo (DGE) 2,152.50p 1.60%
Entain (ENT) 757.20p 1.58%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 5,150.00p 1.58%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 82.00p 1.28%
Barclays (BARC) 302.25p 1.22%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 4,979.00p 0.91%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,899.50p 0.90%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Fresnillo (FRES) 774.50p -1.59%
GSK (GSK) 1,415.50p -1.31%
F&C Investment Trust (FCIT) 1,180.00p -0.84%
Relx plc (REL) 3,954.00p -0.65%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 615.80p -0.61%
BP (BP.) 448.95p -0.61%
Pearson (PSON) 1,354.00p -0.59%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,009.00p -0.56%
SEGRO (SGRO) 704.00p -0.54%
Compass Group (CPG) 2,793.00p -0.50%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 76.50p 8.10%
Trainline (TRN) 320.00p 3.87%
Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 457.00p 2.93%
Primary Health Properties (PHP) 93.10p 2.78%
Currys (CURY) 101.60p 2.42%
SThree (STEM) 255.00p 2.20%
Senior (SNR) 166.40p 2.09%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 308.20p 1.88%
Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 269.50p 1.70%
JPMorgan Emerging Markets Inv Trust (JMG) 115.00p 1.59%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) 125.40p -5.00%
Energean (ENOG) 985.00p -4.37%
Premier Foods (PFD) 178.20p -2.41%
Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) (BPT) 367.80p -1.87%
Bloomsbury Publishing (BMY) 640.00p -1.84%
Diversified Energy Company (DEC) 1,132.00p -1.74%
Target Healthcare Reit Ltd (THRL) 84.00p -1.41%
Indivior (INDV) 724.00p -1.09%
Ithaca Energy (ITH) 142.00p -0.98%
Wood Group (John) (WG.) 25.56p -0.93%
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