London close: Stocks rebound as Fed official suggest later rate hike

UK stocks regained ground at close of trading on Monday after a US Federal Reserve official suggested a September rate hike may not be on the cards as many expect.

Fed vice chairman Stanley Fischer on Monday told Bloomberg he doesn’t expect the first rate hike in nine years to occur until inflation returns to the central bank’s 2% target.

His comments pushed UK stocks higher after spending the earlier part of the day in the red on the back of weak Chinese data.

Chinese exports fell 8.3%, the biggest drop in four months and more than forecasts for a 1% decline. Imports dipped 8.1% in July, in line with market consensus.

Separately, Chinese inflation grew 1.6% year-on-year in July, up from 1.4% the previous month and ahead of estimates of 1.5%. However, the figure remains well below the government’s target of around 3%, adding pressure to roll out more stimulus to support China’s economy.

Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, said, “the latest data out of China at the weekend continued to point to an economy struggling to keep its feet, despite four cuts to bank reserve requirements, in the last six months, as well as benchmark lending rates which currently sit at record lows."

Meanwhile, Greece continued to make headlines as an official from the debt-ridden country said it is hoping to conclude negotiations with its creditors by early Tuesday.

Greek ministers, EU representatives and the International Monetary Fund resumed talks on Monday morning after extensive talks on Sunday.

"Efforts are being made to conclude the negotiations, the horizon is by Monday night or early Tuesday," a Greek official said.

Greece needs to clinch a deal before 20 August when it owes €3.5bn to the European Central Bank.

Oil producers decline

Oil producers, including Royal Dutch Shell and BG Group, headed south as Brent crude hovered just under $49 per barrel, the lowest level since January. OPEC said it has no plans for an emergency meeting to address the issue.

Prudential slumped a day ahead of its half-year results after announcing the appointment of Penny James as chief risk officer to replace John Foley.

Shire, on the other hand, was a top riser on news it is close to starting takeover negotiations with Baxalta, just days after the US group rejected its $31bn approach.

Carillion gained after saying it has been selected by the UK government for a new facilities management services agreement that could earn the construction and outsourcing company up to £4.1bn.

Meggitt was higher after agreeing to acquire the advanced composites business of Cobham for $200m in cash financed from existing resources, in a deal that is expected to be immediately earnings-enhancing.

Market Movers
techMARK 3,227.51 +0.78%
FTSE 100 6,736.22 +0.26%
FTSE 250 17,760.88 +0.59%

FTSE 100 - Risers
Rio Tinto (RIO) 2,635.00p +1.84%
Fresnillo (FRES) 649.50p +1.80%
Inmarsat (ISAT) 967.50p +1.68%
Shire Plc (SHP) 5,380.00p +1.51%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,209.00p +1.51%
Sports Direct International (SPD) 817.50p +1.49%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 556.50p +1.46%
Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,206.00p +1.43%
Wolseley (WOS) 4,273.00p +1.40%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 969.00p +1.36%

FTSE 100 - Fallers
Prudential (PRU) 1,506.50p -1.44%
Tesco (TSCO) 212.75p -1.41%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 264.40p -1.23%
G4S (GFS) 269.60p -1.03%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 81.30p -1.01%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 917.00p -1.01%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 2,592.00p -0.88%
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 183.00p -0.76%
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 1,045.00p -0.76%
Admiral Group (ADM) 1,470.00p -0.74%

FTSE 250 - Risers
Vedanta Resources (VED) 491.40p +10.01%
Lonmin (LMI) 44.35p +8.44%
Evraz (EVR) 95.65p +6.75%
Polymetal International (POLY) 459.70p +5.78%
Nostrum Oil & Gas (NOG) 548.50p +5.58%
Card Factory (CARD) 366.90p +4.44%
Jimmy Choo (CHOO) 181.40p +4.25%
Just Eat (JE.) 414.00p +3.19%
IP Group (IPO) 213.00p +2.90%
Kier Group (KIE) 1,466.00p +2.45%

FTSE 250 - Fallers
esure Group (ESUR) 240.00p -9.60%
Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 839.00p -2.89%
Telecom Plus (TEP) 1,131.00p -1.99%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 53.75p -1.65%
Cairn Energy (CNE) 156.20p -1.39%
Ladbrokes (LAD) 110.00p -1.26%
Poundland Group (PLND) 350.00p -1.13%
Saga (SAGA) 215.50p -1.06%
Tullett Prebon (TLPR) 406.40p -1.00%
Greencore Group (GNC) 314.00p -0.98%

FTSE TechMARK - Risers
Triad Group (TRD) 35.50p +14.52%
DRS Data & Research Services (DRS) 12.75p +6.25%
XP Power Ltd. (DI) (XPP) 1,720.00p +2.69%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 944.50p +2.66%
Gresham Computing (GHT) 99.50p +2.58%
Dialight (DIA) 559.00p +1.45%
BATM Advanced Communications Ltd. (BVC) 18.50p +1.37%
KCOM Group (KCOM) 97.25p +1.30%
E2V Technologies (E2V) 226.00p +0.89%
Promethean World (PRW) 39.00p +0.65%

FTSE TechMARK - Fallers
Torotrak (TRK) 6.35p -2.31%
SDL (SDL) 388.00p -0.64%
Oxford Biomedica (OXB) 8.95p -0.44%
IShares Euro Gov Bond 7-10YR UCITS ETF (IEGM) € 200.91 -0.12%