London midday: Stocks muted ahead of busy week

London stocks were still just a touch higher by midday on Monday, with investors cautious at the start of a week that includes the latest policy announcement from the European Central Bank and the kick-off of US earnings season.

The FTSE 100 was up just 0.1% at 7,918.11.

As far as the ECB is concerned, Sophie Lund-Yates, lead equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said there’s an expectation that rates will be held at 4.5%, "and even more important will be the commentary around the decision, as investors look for clues of cuts coming in summer".

She added: "At the same time, we have CPI numbers in the US to look forward to, following a much hotter read on employment numbers last week than hoped for. Together with the starting gun for earnings season on Friday with financial bellwether JPMorgan Chase results, it’s all eyes forward this week."

Gold prices hit a new record high, shooting past $2,340 an ounce.

Lund-Yates said investors are continuing to untangle the implications of a stronger US jobs market, and the potential for higher interest rates.

"The needle is likely to move this week, depending on the outcome of the Federal Reserve’s March minutes and CPI data. Some commentators believe that sub-$2,000 pricing for the shiny stuff could be a thing of the past, but as with all commodities, there will be ups and downs. There’s an element of people chasing the high which is contributing to the climbs seen in recent days, rather than the rally being solely based on fundamental factors."

In equity markets, Entain rallied following a report in The Times that private equity firm Apollo could be interested in making a takeover offer for some or all of the business.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "The Ladbrokes owner has previously been subject to interest from MGM and DraftKings, but neither suitor managed to place a winning bid. Since then, Entain’s share price has lagged many of its peers and left it a sitting duck for a third party to swoop on the business. Entain is particularly vulnerable at the moment as the business is being run by a caretaker manager while the board searches for a permanent CEO.

"Expect a few twists and turns if the starting gun is fired again on any bid action as there will no doubt be multiple parties interested in picking apart Entain. It already has multiple activist investors on the shareholder register and they won’t let someone casually waltz along and snap it up on the cheap.

"Scale matters in the gambling sector and Entain has its fingers in many pies around the world, including the US which offers some of the best growth opportunities geographically for the industry."

Precious metals miners Fresnillo and Hochschild shone as gold prices advanced.

Miners more generally were firmer, with Rio Tinto, Anglo American and Glencore all up.

Rio was also in focus as it announced the appointment of Bold Baatar as its chief commercial officer to oversee its global commercial and business development, succeeding Alf Barrios.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,918.11 0.09%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,788.52 0.32%
techMARK (TASX) 4,445.90 -0.27%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Entain (ENT) 822.00p 4.85%
easyJet (EZJ) 574.60p 2.75%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 5,100.00p 2.52%
Fresnillo (FRES) 554.50p 2.31%
Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (PSH) 4,060.00p 2.01%
Beazley (BEZ) 671.00p 1.98%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,124.50p 1.75%
Diploma (DPLM) 3,642.00p 1.56%
Glencore (GLEN) 465.15p 1.54%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 427.50p 1.52%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Ocado Group (OCDO) 369.80p -2.61%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 255.20p -2.30%
Sage Group (SGE) 1,221.00p -2.09%
Rightmove (RMV) 535.40p -1.73%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,392.00p -1.48%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,837.00p -1.40%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 9,248.00p -1.39%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 124.60p -1.31%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 1,010.50p -1.27%
Haleon (HLN) 322.30p -1.10%

FTSE 250 - Risers

TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 675.00p 3.45%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 140.80p 3.38%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 2,276.00p 3.08%
OSB Group (OSB) 367.80p 2.68%
Me Group International (MEGP) 172.20p 2.62%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 45.10p 2.38%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 363.00p 2.25%
Bakkavor Group (BAKK) 114.00p 2.24%
HGCapital Trust (HGT) 488.00p 2.20%
PPHE Hotel Group Ltd (PPH) 1,370.00p 1.86%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

North Atlantic Smaller Companies Inv Trust (NAS) 3,570.00p -1.92%
PureTech Health (PRTC) 214.00p -1.83%
Pennon Group (PNN) 642.50p -1.68%
Abrdn Private Equity Opportunities Trust (APEO) 532.00p -1.30%
Breedon Group (BREE) 383.00p -1.29%
Lancashire Holdings Limited (LRE) 587.00p -1.18%
Spire Healthcare Group (SPI) 231.50p -1.07%
Worldwide Healthcare Trust (WWH) 327.00p -0.91%
Computacenter (CCC) 2,696.00p -0.81%
VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd. (VOF) 470.00p -0.74%