London midday: FTSE stays down amid US recession fears; Beazley surges

London stocks were still sharply lower by midday on Thursday as worries about a US recession dented sentiment and as investors waded through a barrage of corporate releases.

The FTSE 100 was down 0.9% at 8,090.99.

JPMorgan said in a research note on Wednesday that there is now a 35% chance the US economy will enter recession by the end of this year, up from 25% last month.

The bank said said US news "hints at a sharper-than-expected weakening in labour demand and early signs of labour shedding". If a US recession doesn’t happen this year, JPM said there was a 45% chance it would happen by the second half of next year.

Patrick Munnelly at Tickmill Group said: "Despite assurances from US Fed officials that the world's largest economy is not headed for a recession, stocks wilted under pressure amid concerns about the outlook for the US economy.

"As a result, Asian stock markets are trading mostly lower on Thursday, following the generally weak handover from Wall Street overnight. In addition, increased geopolitical tensions are negatively impacting the markets."

In equity markets, Spirax-Sarco tumbled as its first-half pre-tax profit came in 10% below consensus estimates amid challenging trading conditions.

Recruiter PageGroup was weaker as it posted a slump in first-half profit as revenue fell in "challenging" market conditions.

Hill & Smith and Helios Towers also lost ground on results.

BT Group, Ashtead, Fresnillo, Jupiter Fund Management and Man Group were all on the back foot as they traded without entitlement to the dividend.

On the upside, Beazley surged to the top of the FTSE 100 as it delivered a record first-half profit of $728.9m.

Entain rallied as the sports betting and gaming group lifted its full-year guidance after a stronger-than-expected second quarter.

Housebuilder Persimmon gained as it reported a decline in first-half pre-tax profit but said it was on track to deliver full-year completions at the top end of guidance.

TI Fluid Systems jumped as the automotive components manufacturer posted interim profits that came in ahead of expectations and said it was confident that adjusted underlying earnings margins would continue to expand throughout FY24.

Morgan Sindall rose as the construction company said its full-year performance was set to be "slightly ahead" of its previous expectations after a record first-half performance.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,090.99 -0.93%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,322.77 -1.23%
techMARK (TASX) 4,727.80 -0.80%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Beazley (BEZ) 716.50p 12.48%
Entain (ENT) 562.40p 7.45%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,960.00p 6.52%
CRH (CDI) (CRH) 6,340.00p 3.22%
Persimmon (PSN) 1,581.00p 2.76%
GSK (GSK) 1,553.50p 1.21%
Darktrace (DARK) 597.80p 0.44%
Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 14,345.00p 0.00%
RELX FINANCE BV 3.375% GTD NTS 20/03/33 (BW73) 99.72p 0.00%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 9,680.00p -0.08%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Spirax Group (SPX) 7,825.00p -8.32%
BT Group (BT.A) 129.40p -4.78%
Smurfit Westrock (DI) (SWR) 3,056.00p -3.69%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 5,096.00p -3.15%
Fresnillo (FRES) 528.00p -3.12%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 800.60p -2.96%
NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 325.00p -2.87%
SEGRO (SGRO) 875.40p -2.80%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 453.10p -2.66%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 122.60p -2.66%

FTSE 250 - Risers

TI Fluid Systems (TIFS) 124.80p 11.43%
Morgan Sindall Group (MGNS) 2,925.00p 5.41%
Foresight Solar Fund Limited (FSFL) 86.10p 1.65%
Clarkson (CKN) 3,800.00p 1.33%
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,160.00p 1.05%
Drax Group (DRX) 652.00p 1.01%
Harbour Energy (HBR) 286.80p 0.88%
Keller Group (KLR) 1,596.00p 0.76%
Kier Group (KIE) 150.20p 0.54%
Senior (SNR) 155.80p 0.52%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Helios Towers (HTWS) 115.40p -5.56%
Patria Private Equity Trust (PPET) 520.00p -4.41%
Bloomsbury Publishing (BMY) 662.00p -4.06%
Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) 76.00p -3.80%
Allianz Technology Trust (ATT) 339.00p -3.56%
Carnival (CCL) 1,004.50p -3.55%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,373.00p -3.51%
Man Group (EMG) 209.80p -3.50%
Savills (SVS) 1,200.00p -3.38%
RS Group (RS1) 748.50p -3.29%