London open: FTSE held back by weakness in travel, hospitality shares
London stocks were just a touch firmer in early trade on Thursday despite a solid finish on Wall Street, held back by weakness in travel and hospitality shares after the introduction of fresh Covid curbs.
At 0905 GMT, the FTSE 100 was up 0.1% at 7,347.30.
Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at Markets.com, said: "After what started as a generally positive session, European markets largely fell yesterday but have opened mildly in the green this morning after Wall Street managed to deliver wins across the board.
"We had a sharp sell-off on omicron on Nov 26th, a couple of really volatile days and then a steady march back to where we were before - now markets are seeking fresh direction and the path of least resistance appears to be sideways for a bit until there is a bit more known about omicron, inflation and the Fed. This is true of other assets, too - look at gold, Bitcoin etc, which are trading in narrow ranges the last few days.
"Positive vaccine news from Pfizer - three shots to beat omicron they say - saw rates move higher - markets think this means the Fed is not going to worry about tapering more quickly, potentially raising rates three times next year. The market is pricing in a first hike for May, second in September and even a third in Dec - market is well positioned and fully discounting a pretty aggressive Fed hike cycle now and stock markets seem unperturbed."
A survey out earlier from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors showed that house prices held steady in November as the number of people putting their homes on the market continued to ease.
According to the latest residential market survey from RICS, the net balance of surveyors reporting that house prices have risen over the past three months remained unchanged in November at +71, a touch above consensus for +70.
The new buyer enquiries balance rose to +13 from +11 in October, with demand recovering from a slight dip in September, when stamp duty returned to its traditional threshold.
But only a small number of homes are being put up for sale, with the new instructions balance holding steady at -18. The average estate agent had just 37 homes on their books, RICS found.
It said: "The continuing drought in new listings was a significant factor holding back the market nationwide."
Simon Rubinsohn, the body’s chief economist, added: "Unless this trend is reversed soon, transaction levels may flatline in 2022 with limited choice proving more significant that any shift in the interest rate environment for new buyers."
In equity markets, DS Smith rallied after saying its financial performance would improve as the packaging company reported a sharp rise in first-half operating profit and an increase in the interim dividend.
AstraZeneca gained after saying that its Evusheld antibody combination has been granted emergency use authorisation by the US Food and Drug Administration for the prevention of Covid-19 in adults and adolescents who are immunocompromised.
Iconic UK footwear brand Dr Martens was on the front foot after it posted a 46% rise in interim profits, driven by a recovery in physical stores sales as they reopened from Covid curbs and said it would pay its first dividend.
Watches of Switzerland advanced after it posted a jump in first-half profit and revenue as it hailed a "robust" performance in the UK and an "outstanding" in the US, amid strong demand.
Moonpig was trading up despite saying sales fell in the first half as it came up against tough lockdown comparatives.
Sports Direct owner Frasers Group rose after it reported a 75% increase in interim profit, driven by the strong reopening of stores after lockdown, new Flannels stores and continued growth in online sales.
On the downside, BA owner IAG, caterer Compass, Premier Inn owner Whitbread, Restaurant Group, Cineworld, Wizz Air and easyJet were all down amid worries about the impact of new Covid curbs after the government announced it was moving to ‘plan B’.
Rolls-Royce fell as it said annual free cash flow would be better than expected after trading improved, but sales at its civil aerospace were lower than forecast.
Investec, Redde Northgate and Assura were all in the red as they traded without entitlement to the dividend.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,347.30 0.14%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 23,265.65 0.15%
techMARK (TASX) 4,482.21 0.30%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Smith (DS) (SMDS) 391.90p 2.91%
Darktrace (DARK) 419.40p 2.34%
BT Group (BT.A) 174.90p 1.77%
Informa (INF) 513.80p 1.58%
Intertek Group (ITRK) 5,714.00p 1.20%
Experian (EXPN) 3,650.00p 1.19%
Royal Mail (RMG) 492.90p 1.17%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,431.00p 1.17%
Ferguson (FERG) 12,400.00p 1.14%
Polymetal International (POLY) 1,333.00p 1.14%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 123.78p -3.78%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 138.68p -2.86%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,041.00p -2.39%
Whitbread (WTB) 2,917.00p -1.39%
Compass Group (CPG) 1,547.00p -1.09%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 6,688.00p -1.04%
BP (BP.) 345.20p -1.00%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 2,225.00p -0.98%
Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 1,674.20p -0.88%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 46.97p -0.84%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Moonpig Group (MOON) 374.20p 4.53%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 1,494.00p 2.75%
Balfour Beatty (BBY) 253.60p 2.59%
Volution Group (FAN) 527.00p 2.53%
Hammerson (HMSO) 34.02p 2.50%
Rank Group (RNK) 148.00p 2.21%
Petropavlovsk (POG) 21.34p 1.91%
Schroder Oriental Income Fund Ltd. (SOI) 272.00p 1.68%
Indivior (INDV) 229.80p 1.68%
VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd. (VOF) 501.00p 1.52%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
FirstGroup (FGP) 98.25p -3.39%
Restaurant Group (RTN) 88.10p -3.08%
Cineworld Group (CINE) 50.20p -2.79%
Investec (INVP) 388.90p -2.46%
AO World (AO.) 96.70p -2.42%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 302.20p -2.42%
Virgin Money UK (VMUK) 168.65p -2.32%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 298.80p -2.29%
Harbour Energy (HBR) 420.80p -2.28%
easyJet (EZJ) 537.80p -2.25%