London midday: Stocks in the red but StanChart, BP gain after results

London stocks were down but off earlier lows by midday on Tuesday as investors waded through a barrage of earnings and looked ahead to key US tech results, and rate announcements from the Federal Reserve and the Bank of England this week.

The FTSE 100 was down 0.2% at 8,272.81.

Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets, said: "Today marks the beginning of a highly volatile and unpredictable period that could make or break market sentiment for the coming months. In a week that sees roughly a third of the S&P 500 report, markets will be crossing their fingers as we await earnings from four of the Mag7.

"Today will have a particular focus on Microsoft, with the world’s second-largest listed company reporting before the open. The story appears to be similar for many of these big tech names, with traders on the lookout for signs that the vast sums of money being invested in AI has started to pay dividends. However, once again it may be the now hum drum cloud services segment which comes to the rescue to drive earnings higher once more."

On home shores, a survey out earlier from the British Retail Consortium and NielsenIQ showed that shop inflation was unchanged in July, but cost pressures were "lurking over the horizon" as commodity prices remained at risk from climate change and geopolitical tensions.

Shop price annual inflation was unchanged at 0.2%, below the three-month average rate of 0.3%, while annual growth remained at its lowest rate since October 2021.

Non-food remained in deflation at -0.9% in July, up from -1.0% in the preceding month, while food inflation slowed to 2.3% from 2.5% in June. A poor summer and weak demand saw clothing and footwear prices down for the seventh consecutive month while book prices also fell.

Fresh food inflation slowed further in July, to 1.4% from 1.5% in June. This is below the three-month average rate of 1.6%. Inflation is its lowest rate since November 2021.

"The 2023 declines in global food commodity prices continued to feed through, helping bring down food inflation rates over the first seven months of 2024. However this shows signs of reversing, suggesting renewed pressure on food prices in the future," said BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson.

Sports gatherings for Wimbledon and the Euros benefited from discounted snacking items such as crisps and soft drinks, she added.

In equity markets, Diageo tumbled as the drinks maker reported a drop in full-year organic operating profit, citing a weaker performance in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).

Accounting software firm Sage fell despite reiterating guidance and delivering in-line revenue growth for the first nine months of the year.

Croda lost ground as the chemicals company cut its full-year profit outlook, pointing to a weaker-than-expected performance in the life sciences segment, with continued destocking in crop protection and consumer health.

On the upside, Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered shot to the top of the FTSE 100 as it unveiled its biggest-ever share buyback and lifted guidance as interim earnings beat estimates.

The company said it would buy back $1.5bn in shares starting immediately. Pre-tax profit for the first six months of the year rose 5% to $3.5bn, compared with average forecasts of $3.46bn.

StanChart said it now expects operating income to grow more than 7% at constant currency rates compared with a previous projection of between 5% and 7%.

BP gushed higher after saying it swung into the red on a reported basis in the second quarter due to $2.77bn of so-called "adjusting items", but the energy giant beat market forecasts on an underlying basis and unveiled another $1.75bn share buyback programme.

Weir Group gained as the engineering firm reported a small rise in first-half adjusted profits and said that strong aftermarket demand had bolstered its project outlook, but said full-year revenues will likely miss forecasts.

St James’s Place surged after announcing plans to cut costs by £100m a year by 2027, with anticipated cumulative net savings of nearly £500m through to 2030.

Greggs gained as the bakery chain lifted its interim dividend and reported a jump in profit and revenue as it benefited from an expanded food and drinks range.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,272.81 -0.24%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 21,439.92 0.88%
techMARK (TASX) 4,805.64 -0.17%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Standard Chartered (STAN) 768.20p 5.70%
Weir Group (WEIR) 1,997.00p 3.47%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 4,182.00p 2.17%
Beazley (BEZ) 671.50p 1.90%
Fresnillo (FRES) 580.00p 1.40%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 745.20p 1.31%
BP (BP.) 458.80p 1.28%
M&G (MNG) 212.60p 1.19%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 5,478.00p 1.18%
Centrica (CNA) 132.45p 1.15%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Diageo (DGE) 2,362.50p -7.26%
Convatec Group (CTEC) 234.80p -6.75%
Entain (ENT) 571.00p -4.29%
Glencore (GLEN) 414.40p -3.05%
Croda International (CRDA) 3,986.00p -2.88%
Smurfit Westrock (DI) (SWR) 3,644.00p -2.72%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,290.50p -2.09%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 59.88p -2.00%
Sage Group (SGE) 1,065.50p -1.93%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 4,919.00p -1.41%

FTSE 250 - Risers

St James's Place (STJ) 697.00p 24.80%
Greggs (GRG) 3,084.00p 5.04%
Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) (BPT) 288.40p 4.12%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,983.00p 3.55%
Pagegroup (PAGE) 428.20p 3.28%
Bank of Georgia Group (BGEO) 4,640.00p 3.00%
Indivior (INDV) 1,020.00p 2.98%
Games Workshop Group (GAW) 10,490.00p 2.84%
Inchcape (INCH) 864.50p 2.79%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 123.00p 2.76%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Ocado Group (OCDO) 406.70p -5.99%
Tyman (TYMN) 398.00p -2.81%
Spectris (SXS) 2,936.00p -2.20%
Asia Dragon Trust (DGN) 401.00p -2.20%
Essentra (ESNT) 162.60p -1.45%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 157.40p -1.38%
Kainos Group (KNOS) 1,114.00p -1.07%
Energean (ENOG) 978.50p -1.06%
Finsbury Growth & Income Trust (FGT) 841.00p -0.94%
PureTech Health (PRTC) 174.60p -0.80%