London close: Retailers, miners and oil stocks help FTSE set new record

Strong gains in the retail sector and a solid performance from mining and oil stocks helped the FTSE 100 set a new record high on Wednesday, amid hopes for further stimulus in China and no surprises from a policy meeting in Europe.

London's benchmark Footsie rose 21.51 points (+0.3%) to a new all-time closing high of 7,096.89, topping a previous record of 7,089.77 reached on Friday. The index also set a new intraday high of 7,111.72 early on.

The annual rate of Chinese economic growth slowed to a six-year low of 7% in the first quarter, while growth in fixed-asset investment, industrial production and retail sales all eased in March, ramping up the pressure on policymakers in Beijing to act.

The European Central Bank decided to keep monetary policy unchanged at its meeting on Wednesday, as expected by analysts following the recent decision to implement quantitative easing.

One notable highlight was the interruption from a protester who showered ECB president Mario Draghi with confetti while yelling "end ECB dictatorship".

Oanda analyst Craig Erlam said: "All things considered, as expected, today was something of a non-event from the ECB. [...] This had to be expected when you consider that it only started purchasing government debt last month and there would therefore be very little evidence of its effectiveness so far."

Retailers provide a boost, miners rise

Supermarket group Sainbury's was near the top of the leaderboard due to a technical move higher, according to City traders, in what was described as a "very squeezy" market where all top risers in Europe all have big short bases.

Other retailers were also on shopping lists such as Morrisons, Sports Direct, Dixons Carphone and Next, with the latter benefitting from an upgrade by JPMorgan from 'neutral' to 'overweight'.

Sportswear and accessories chain JD Sports were also rising strongly after the group sprinted past its 2016 forecasts a year early as it surpassed £100m of operating profits for the first time.

High end fashion label Burberry also edged higher after strong demand for its iconic heritage trench coats and scarves helped second-half revenues rise 9%.

Mining stocks edged higher on the back of hopes over Chinese stimulus, including Anglo American, BHP Billiton, Glencore and Rio Tinto. Mexican precious metals producer Fresnillo also rose after making an impressive start to 2015 with both silver and gold output up significantly over last year.

Tullow Oil was higher for the second day after a broker upgrade. This time, Goldman Sachs lifted its rating from 'neutral' to 'buy', calling the stock a "source of opportunity".

The wider oil sector was also on the rise, including Premier Oil, Shell and BP, as crude prices jumped following a report which showed US oil stockpiles grew less than expected last week. Brent was up 2.1% while West Texas Intermediate gained 3.6%.

Market Movers
techMARK 3,251.13 -0.21%
FTSE 100 7,096.78 +0.30%
FTSE 250 17,873.53 +0.08%

FTSE 100 - Risers
Sports Direct International (SPD) 670.00p +3.80%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 284.70p +3.53%
CRH (CRH) 1,857.00p +3.00%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,034.00p +2.68%
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,242.00p +2.64%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,829.00p +2.52%
Next (NXT) 7,285.00p +2.46%
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 203.60p +2.31%
Fresnillo (FRES) 738.00p +2.15%
GKN (GKN) 364.10p +2.10%

FTSE 100 - Fallers
Bunzl (BNZL) 1,860.00p -2.62%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,173.00p -2.34%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 583.50p -2.02%
Reed Elsevier (REL) 1,150.00p -1.63%
easyJet (EZJ) 1,844.00p -1.44%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,142.00p -1.38%
Carnival (CCL) 3,259.00p -1.12%
ARM Holdings (ARM) 1,154.00p -1.11%
Land Securities Group (LAND) 1,291.00p -1.00%
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 1,225.00p -0.97%

FTSE 250 - Risers
Tullow Oil (TLW) 400.80p +8.74%
Premier Oil (PMO) 178.20p +7.67%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 539.00p +5.79%
Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 239.50p +4.22%
Amec Foster Wheeler (AMFW) 953.50p +3.64%
Cairn Energy (CNE) 178.20p +3.60%
Telecom Plus (TEP) 978.00p +3.49%
Greggs (GRG) 1,083.00p +3.24%
Lonmin (LMI) 137.90p +3.22%
Ophir Energy (OPHR) 165.90p +3.04%

FTSE 250 - Fallers
Vesuvius (VSVS) 470.40p -6.01%
Virgin Money Holdings (UK) (VM.) 399.90p -5.24%
Soco International (SIA) 188.80p -4.36%
Zoopla Property Group (WI) (ZPLA) 195.80p -4.02%
Indivior (INDV) 216.00p -3.79%
Senior (SNR) 347.50p -3.07%
Acacia Mining (ACA) 283.80p -2.94%
Alent (ALNT) 380.40p -2.84%
Betfair Group (BET) 2,214.00p -2.25%
Countrywide (CWD) 541.50p -2.17%