London midday: Earnings and metal prices lift FTSE 100 to another record

UK equities were continuing to reach new heights on Wednesday as markets rose for the sixth consecutive session, helped by rising mining stocks and well-received results from Reckitt Benckiser and Lloyds.

"European markets are in the green once again this morning, with the FTSE 100 continuing its welcome trend of reaching fresh record highs on a daily basis," said Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets.

The FTSE 100 was trading 0.6% higher at 8,090 by lunchtime, after setting its second record closing high in as many days on Tuesday at 8,044.81.

"The weakness of the euro and pound highlight the growing confidence that we will soon see the ECB and Bank of England shift onto a new phase of monetary easing, with European indices similarly being driven by expectations of a June pivot."

Sentiment was also being lifted by strong gains on Wall Street on Tuesday and a big after-hours surge in the share price of Tesla – the first of the Magnificent Seven tech stocks to report their earnings – despite numbers missing analysts' estimates.

Tesla futures were up 12% ahead of the opening bell for Wednesday's session, which will see a flurry of earnings from other American blue chips, including Boeing and AT&T before markets open and Meta once they close, followed by Microsoft and Alphabet on Thursday.

This side of the Pond, German business sentiment improved to an 11-month high in April, according to a survey released on Wednesday by the Ifo Institute. The business climate index rose to 89.4 from 87.9 in March, coming in above consensus expectations of 88.8.

Reckitt, Lloyds and miners provide a lift

First-quarter results from consumer goods group Reckitt Benckiser were well received with the stock up 5% by midday, after the company said improving price/mix was able to offset a drop in volumes in the first half as like-for-like revenues rose 1.5%.

After an earlier stint in the red, Lloyds Bank was more than 2% higher and a top riser on the Footsie after holding on to full-year guidance despite a 28% fall in first-quarter profits due to lower net interest income and higher operating expenses.

International distribution and services group Bunzl was also on the rise after holding on to guidance despite a drop in first-quarter revenues.

Mining stocks were mostly on the up, bouncing back after their recent underperformance following a jump in iron ore prices to a seven-week high. That was after Australian producer Fortescue reported that 2024 shipments would miss market expectations due to supply disruptions. Rio Tinto, Glencore and Anglo American were all performing well in London.

Bucking the trend was blue chip silver miner Fresnillo, falling 1% after reporting a drop in both gold and silver output over the first three months of the year.

On the FTSE 250, shares in PZ Cussons jumped 5% on plans to sell the St Tropez tanning brand while the company said it is reviewing its operations in Africa, as it backed its profit outlook for 2024.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,090.06 0.56%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,801.42 0.01%
techMARK (TASX) 4,520.87 0.45%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 4,453.00p 4.78%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 5,506.00p 3.55%
BAE Systems (BA.) 1,375.00p 2.61%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 52.50p 2.26%
Glencore (GLEN) 478.00p 2.03%
BP (BP.) 531.00p 1.51%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 838.40p 1.35%
Bunzl (BNZL) 3,094.00p 1.31%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 2,183.00p 1.30%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,138.00p 1.28%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Croda International (CRDA) 4,732.00p -3.19%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 366.90p -2.89%
Entain (ENT) 826.40p -2.41%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,138.50p -2.23%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 120.85p -1.67%
Persimmon (PSN) 1,314.50p -1.50%
Fresnillo (FRES) 570.50p -1.38%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 517.00p -1.37%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,694.00p -1.35%
Weir Group (WEIR) 1,987.00p -1.24%

FTSE 250 - Risers

PZ Cussons (PZC) 99.10p 4.76%
Quilter (QLT) 107.20p 4.59%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 54.20p 3.83%
Darktrace (DARK) 502.00p 2.45%
TBC Bank Group (TBCG) 3,285.00p 2.34%
Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 211.00p 2.18%
Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) 77.30p 1.98%
Dunelm Group (DNLM) 988.00p 1.91%
NextEnergy Solar Fund Limited Red (NESF) 76.00p 1.74%
AO World (AO.) 106.80p 1.71%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Breedon Group (BREE) 366.50p -3.55%
Mobico Group (MCG) 54.00p -3.23%
Mitie Group (MTO) 116.80p -2.67%
North Atlantic Smaller Companies Inv Trust (NAS) 3,690.00p -2.64%
Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 187.40p -2.09%
Marshalls (MSLH) 260.00p -2.07%
Tritax Eurobox (GBP) (EBOX) 49.80p -1.97%
Currys (CURY) 61.60p -1.91%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 355.80p -1.88%
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 581.50p -1.86%