London midday: FTSE pops higher as investors mull jobs data

London stocks had turned positive by midday on Tuesday after US futures rose following a late selloff on Wall Street, as investors digested the latest UK jobs data.

The FTSE 100 was up 0.2% at 7,239.47, having opened in the red after US markets were rattled by reports that Apple was planning to slow hiring and spending into 2023 in a number of key areas.

Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: "Quite apart from the company’s influence given its size - its market value is currently over $2.4 trillion - it is also seen as a strong indicator of consumer spending intentions.

"The news sent its shares down by over 2%, but equally importantly provided another stark reminder of the fact that corporates could be feeling the squeeze against a backdrop of high inflation and tightening margins."

On home shores, meanwhile, the latest data from the Office for National Statistics showed that employment picked up in the three months to May but real pay fell at the fastest rate since records began.

Average total pay growth was 6.2%, down from 6.8% in April, while regular pay growth excluding bonuses was 4.3%, up a touch from 4.2%. Adjusted for inflation, however, total pay fell by 0.9% and regular pay was down 2.8% - the biggest fall since records began in 2001.

The data also showed that the unemployment rate was steady at 3.8% in the three months to May.

Meanwhile, the number of people in employment rose by 296,000. This was well ahead of consensus expectations of 170,000 and marked the biggest jump since the three months to August 2021.

David Freeman, head of labour market and household statistics at the ONS, said: "Following recent increases in inflation, pay is now clearly falling in real terms both including and excluding bonuses. Excluding bonuses, real pay is now dropping faster than at any time since records began in 2001."

In equity markets, Informa rallied as it backed its full-year expectations, hailed strong first-half revenues and announced the acquisition of US-based Industry Dive for $389m.

4Imprint surged after it said 2022 operating profit was set to be "materially" above consensus analyst forecast, and not less than $75m.

Darktrace was also in the black as it said full-year core earnings margins were set to be above expectations, as customer numbers increased.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,239.47 0.22%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,078.20 0.33%
techMARK (TASX) 4,312.95 -0.04%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Harbour Energy (HBR) 356.40p 5.35%
Informa (INF) 560.20p 4.32%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 404.00p 2.54%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 163.60p 2.51%
Barclays (BARC) 157.20p 1.93%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 575.80p 1.73%
NATWEST GROUP PLC ORD 100P (NWG) 224.80p 1.72%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,671.50p 1.70%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 43.51p 1.69%
Land Securities Group (LAND) 693.60p 1.52%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

GSK (GSK) 1,780.00p -18.03%
Aveva Group (AVV) 2,230.00p -2.83%
Flutter Entertainment (CDI) (FLTR) 7,702.00p -2.16%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 767.40p -1.59%
Rightmove (RMV) 597.80p -1.29%
Auto Trader Group (AUTO) 581.00p -1.19%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 7,560.00p -1.18%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,610.50p -1.02%
Abrdn (ABDN) 153.80p -0.90%
Schroders (SDR) 2,710.00p -0.88%

FTSE 250 - Risers

4Imprint Group (FOUR) 2,900.00p 18.85%
Polymetal International (POLY) 191.10p 7.36%
Darktrace (DARK) 357.80p 6.71%
Baltic Classifieds Group (BCG) 139.00p 4.51%
HarbourVest Global Private Equity Limited A Shs (HVPE) 2,075.00p 3.75%
TI Fluid Systems (TIFS) 156.40p 2.89%
Royal Mail (RMG) 284.90p 2.81%
HGCapital Trust (HGT) 337.00p 2.74%
Coats Group (COA) 65.10p 2.52%
Direct Line Insurance Group (DLG) 198.20p 2.35%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 530.40p -12.88%
IntegraFin Holding (IHP) 240.20p -3.53%
Molten Ventures (GROW) 417.60p -3.47%
Domino's Pizza Group (DOM) 274.20p -3.38%
Carnival (CCL) 711.00p -2.42%
Trainline (TRN) 375.30p -2.04%
888 Holdings (DI) (888) 148.70p -1.98%
Indivior (INDV) 300.00p -1.90%
Chrysalis Investments Limited NPV (CHRY) 95.90p -1.84%
Future (FUTR) 1,732.00p -1.76%