Hot Features
Premium
Level up your trading with our powerful tools and real-time insights all in one place.
London open: FTSE nudges higher; BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce rally
London stocks were a touch firmer in early trade on Monday, but defence firms powered ahead amid expectations of an increase in spending.
At 0845 GMT, the FTSE 100 was up 0.1% at 8,739.40, with trading expected to remain quiet as US markets will be closed for Presidents Day.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “The struggle to maintain momentum last week looks set to bleed into early trading on Monday, with the FTSE 100 broadly flat at the open.
“Investors are keeping a close eye on US-led peace talks for the Ukraine war, especially since EU and Ukrainian officials were excluded from the discussions. On top of that, President Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on European car imports starting April 2 is adding to the uncertainty, leaving traders cautious about the broader market outlook.”
On home shores, the latest data from Rightmove showed that house price growth slowed in February as the stamp duty deadline loomed, but activity remained “robust”.
House prices rose 0.5% on the month following a 1.7% increase in January. On the year, house prices were up 1.4% in February, down from 1.8% growth the month before.
The average price of a home stood at £367,994 this month, versus £366,189 in January.
Rightmove said price growth was muted for this time of year as new sellers lowered price expectations due to the looming stamp duty deadline and high competition.
It said the average number of available homes for sale per estate agency branch remained at a 10-year high, reducing sellers’ pricing power.
Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove, said: “New sellers are showing some pricing restraint after a fast start to the year, being mindful of both the high level of seller competition, and in England also of the looming stamp duty deadline and extra costs for some buyers. Agents report that some of the steam is coming out of new sellers’ price expectations to fit the changing market conditions, which is a sensible reaction to attract buyer interest, and it will also help to support activity levels.
“The upcoming stamp duty deadline in England remains a key talking point, and while some movers may not be affected at all, others will be more severely impacted. We’ve previously suggested reforms such as regional variations in stamp duty charges to try and address some of the inequities in the current system. With the predicted conveyancing log-jam likely to cause some buyers to miss the deadline and end up paying more tax through no fault of their own, it would seem justifiable for the government to announce a short extension before the end of March.”
In equity markets, defence firm BAE Systems was the top gainer on the FTSE 100, closely followed by Rolls-Royce, as European officials called for an emergency summit on the Ukraine war.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: “The possibility of increased military spending has underpinned the sector for some time, with the group being one of the preferred plays in the meantime, with Rolls-Royce also seeing the renewed interest lifting its shares by almost 2% and building on a gain of more than 90% over the last year.”
Assura surged as it confirmed it has received four takeover proposals from US private equity firm KKR, the most recent of which valued the company at £1.56bn, and all of which have been rejected.
Moneysupermarket jumped as the price comparison site reported a rise in full-year profits and announced a share buyback programme of up to £30m.
Ukraine-based iron ore miner Ferrexpo was also a high riser amid the prospect of a potential Russia-Ukraine peace deal.
Top 10 FTSE 100 Risers
| Sponsored by Plus500 |
|
| # | Name | Change Pct | Change | Cur Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Bae Systems Plc | +4.60% | +56.50 | 1,284.50 |
| 2 |  |
Barclays | +3.09% | +9.10 | 303.70 |
| 3 |  |
Natwest | +3.04% | +13.00 | 441.10 |
| 4 |  |
Schroders Plc | +2.37% | +8.80 | 380.40 |
| 5 |  |
Banco Santander S.a. | +1.78% | +8.50 | 487.00 |
| 6 |  |
Aib Group Plc | +1.67% | +8.50 | 516.00 |
| 7 |  |
Wise Plc | +1.51% | +16.00 | 1,076.00 |
| 8 |  |
Standard Chartered Plc | +1.29% | +14.50 | 1,137.50 |
| 9 |  |
Rolls-royce | +1.15% | +7.20 | 631.80 |
| 10 |  |
Bp 8%pf | +1.12% | +1.50 | 136.00 |
Top 10 FTSE 100 Fallers
| Sponsored by Plus500 |
|
| # | Name | Change Pct | Change | Cur Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Segro Plc | -2.52% | -18.40 | 713.00 |
| 2 |  |
Flutter Entertainment Plc | -2.33% | -550.00 | 23,080.00 |
| 3 |  |
British American Tobacco Plc | -1.49% | -46.00 | 3,044.00 |
| 4 |  |
Rentokil Initial Plc | -1.11% | -4.70 | 420.00 |
| 5 |  |
Gsk Plc | -1.01% | -14.50 | 1,420.50 |
| 6 |  |
Glencore Plc | -0.85% | -3.00 | 350.20 |
| 7 |  |
Unilever Plc | -0.77% | -34.00 | 4,365.00 |
| 8 |  |
Vodafone Group Plc | -0.75% | -0.50 | 66.02 |
| 9 |  |
Relx Plc | -0.66% | -27.00 | 4,046.00 |
| 10 |  |
Bp Plc | -0.64% | -3.00 | 464.80 |
US close: Stocks mixed as Trump announces new ‘reciprocal tariffs’
Major indices delivered a mixed performance on Friday after Donald Trump announced new “reciprocal tariffs” on a number of America’s global trading partners.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.37% at 44,546.08, while the S&P 500 lost 0.01% to 6,114.63 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.41% firmer at 20,026.77.
The Dow closed 165.35 points lower on Friday, taking a bite out of gains recorded in the previous session as traders digested January wholesale inflation numbers.
News that Trump had signed a memorandum laying out a plan to impose levies on goods from countries with duties on US products was in focus throughout the session on Friday.
“They charge us a tax or tariff and we charge them,” said Trump, who tasked Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick to head a study on the appropriate levies for each nation. “We want a level playing field,” he added”
Under the plan, the US will look at other countries’ non-tariff policies – including value-added taxes and other practices – that the office of the US trade representative deems to be “unfair”.
“America has helped many Countries throughout the years, at great financial cost. It is now time that these Countries remember this, and treat us fairly,” said Trump.
January retail sales figures also drew an amount of attention on Friday, revealing that Americans pulled back on their spending at the start of the year. According to the Department of Commerce, in seasonally adjusted terms, retail sales volumes shrank in January at a month-on-month clip of 0.9% to reach $723.9bn. Sales of motor vehicles and parts were down sharply, by 2.8% when compared with December, and in absolute terms, accounted for over half of the drop in retail sales volumes.
Elsewhere on the macro front, import prices increased 0.3% in January, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the largest one-month rise since April 2024, while export prices increased 1.3% for the largest monthly gain since May 2022.
Still on data, capacity utilisation rose to 77.8% in January, according to the Federal Reserve, up from 77.5% in December and slightly ahead of market expectations for a reading of 77.7%, while industrial production increased 2% year-on-year in January for the biggest rise since October 2022.
In the corporate space, cryptocurrency marketplace Coinbase and property rental platform operator Airbnb both traded higher after their Q4 earnings came in ahead of expectations, while GameStop surged after the video game retailer said it was mulling over whether or not it should begin investing in Bitcoin.
Drugmaker Moderna was also in focus after revealing it had recorded a wider-than-expected Q4 loss despite revenues coming in ahead of expectations.
Monday newspaper round-up: Council tax, layoffs, tech companies
Britain’s poorest households are paying an increasing share of their income on council tax, according to new analysis that likened it to the poll tax that contributed to the downfall of Margaret Thatcher. The poorest fifth of households paid 4.8% of their income on council tax in England, Wales and Scotland and on domestic rates in Northern Ireland in the 2020-21 financial year, up from 2.9% in 2002-3, according to research by the Resolution Foundation. – Guardian
UK employers are preparing for the biggest redundancy round in a decade amid collapsing business confidence as firms brace for tax increases from April that Rachel Reeves announced in her autumn budget. In a fresh blow for the chancellor, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), which represents human resources professionals, said a survey of 2,000 employers showed redundancy intentions at their highest level in 10 years, barring the Covid pandemic. – Guardian
At a recent dinner for the HR chiefs of Britain’s biggest listed companies, anger was stirring. Donald Trump’s crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in America was riling up many guests. According to one of those in attendance, the prevailing mood in the room was: “We need to take a stand against this. We’re not going to bow down to Trump and move in that direction.” – Telegraph
Tech companies including Elon Musk’s X and Google have claimed that businesses could leave Britain over the cost of funding an online safety crackdown. Google said fees that will be charged to internet companies as part of the Online Safety Act risked “driving services” out of the UK, while X warned that it could “disincentivise” global companies from entering the market. – Telegraph
