London midday: FTSE stays up ahead of busy week; Deliveroo surges
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Monday 28 Apr 2025
(Sharecast News) - London stocks were still in the black by midday on Monday as investors eyed a busy week, with UK banks and US tech giants due to report.
The FTSE 100 was up 0.3% at 8,442.06.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: "An uneasy calm has descended on markets, with a sense that no news is good news in respect of any further tariff announcements for the time being at least.
"Left to their own devices without the major distractions of the confusing messages emanating from the White House, investors have gone back to their knitting temporarily and markets have edged slightly higher as a result, although not by enough to repair the damage which has already been wrought."
Hunter pointed to a busy reporting week to come domestically, with updates from the oil majors and the pharmaceuticals, as well as a half-year report from Primark owner Associated British Foods.
"However, the first quarter reporting season from the UK banks is likely to top the agenda. Each has had a strong share price run leading into the numbers, with the recent read across from the US banks providing some comfort. That being said, and as with their Stateside peers, outlook comments are likely to be highly cautious given the current global backdrop and any notable increases in impairment provisions would likely be met with some disappointment."
In the US, tech results from the likes of Meta, Amazon, Microsoft and Apple will be in focus.
In UK equity markets, Ladbrokes owner Entain was the top gainer on the FTSE 100 ahead of its first-quarter trading update on Tuesday.
Deliveroo surged after it announced late on Friday that it had received a £2.7m takeover proposal from US rival DoorDash that it was minded to recommend.
Housebuilder Berkeley Group was boosted by an upgrade to 'buy' from 'neutral' at UBS.
On the downside, Marks & Spencer slumped as it continued to deal with the impact of a cyber attack which has led the retailer to pause online orders.
According to Sky News on Monday, the retailer has ordered around 200 agency workers at its main distribution centre in Castle Donington to stay at home as it deals with the crisis.
ITV was weaker following a report that French media firm Banijay Group is working on plans for a takeover offer for the broadcaster or its studio arm.
The Financial Times cited sources as saying that Banijay has held early talks with ITV, whose studio arm has attracted interest from a range of investment groups such as RedBird IMI, which owns rival All3Media, as well as private equity funds.
Fintech group Plus500 nudged lower despite saying it expects 2025 results to be ahead of current market forecasts after an "excellent" start to the year, driven by recent macroeconomic and financial market conditions.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,442.06 0.32%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,740.79 0.67%
techMARK (TASX) 4,488.89 0.71%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Entain (ENT) 614.20p 4.42%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 439.60p 2.38%
Diageo (DGE) 2,110.00p 2.18%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 79.02p 1.91%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 4,080.00p 1.75%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,237.00p 1.54%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,924.00p 1.32%
Croda International (CRDA) 3,007.00p 1.25%
Barclays (BARC) 296.45p 1.23%
WPP (WPP) 562.20p 1.22%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 377.20p -2.28%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 795.00p -1.43%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,079.00p -1.10%
Weir Group (WEIR) 2,288.00p -1.04%
Beazley (BEZ) 885.00p -1.01%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,131.00p -0.79%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 340.40p -0.79%
Relx plc (REL) 3,975.00p -0.70%
BAE Systems (BA.) 1,672.50p -0.59%
Intertek Group (ITRK) 4,570.00p -0.52%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Deliveroo Class (ROO) 172.40p 17.60%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 59.00p 6.88%
Indivior (INDV) 855.50p 4.90%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 371.00p 3.40%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 71.25p 3.19%
NCC Group (NCC) 144.60p 3.14%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 284.00p 3.12%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,662.00p 2.78%
Dr. Martens (DOCS) 53.95p 2.57%
Kier Group (KIE) 141.00p 2.47%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Mobico Group (MCG) 33.20p -4.65%
ITV (ITV) 78.85p -2.41%
Syncona Limited NPV (SYNC) 91.70p -1.40%
Raspberry PI Holdings (RPI) 415.90p -1.26%
International Workplace Group (IWG) 180.70p -0.99%
Vietnam Enterprise Investments (DI) (VEIL) 515.00p -0.96%
Grainger (GRI) 215.50p -0.92%
Clarkson (CKN) 3,285.00p -0.90%
Ithaca Energy (ITH) 134.00p -0.89%
JPMorgan Emerging Markets Inv Trust (JMG) 102.40p -0.78%
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