London open: Stocks rise on US, Asian gains; UK facing recession

London stocks rose in early trade on Friday, boosted by stellar gains in the US and Asia after a cooler-than-expected US inflation print, even as data showed the UK economy was facing recession.

Also helping sentiment was news that China has decided to scrap Covid flight restrictions and cut the quarantine requirements for inbound travellers to eight days.

Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: "European markets are trading higher thanks to cooler US inflation figures and China easing some of its Covid restrictions.

"Stocks which benefit most from the reopening of China’s economy are trading at the top of the FTSE 100 like Prudential and Anglo American."

On home shores, figures released earlier by the Office for National Statistics showed that the economy shrank by 0.2% in the last quarter, leaving the UK on the brink of recession.

GDP fell by 0.2% in the three months to September end, compared to a rise of 0.2% in the second quarter. Still, this was ahead of expectations for a 0.5% contraction.

Production output fell by 1.5% in July-September, the fifth consecutive quarter of contraction. Manufacturing output tumbled 2.3%.

In September, GDP fell by 0.6%. That compares to a fall of 0.1% in August, revised upwards from an earlier estimate for a 0.3% contraction.

The bank holiday for the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, when many businesses closed, weighed heavily on September’s print.

Darren Morgan, director of economic statistics at the ONS, said: "With September showing a notable fall partly due to the effects of the additional bank holiday for the Queen’s funeral, overall the economy shrank slightly in the third quarter.

"The quarterly fall was driven by manufacturing, which saw widespread declines across most industries.

"Services were flat overall, but consumer-facing industries fared badly, with a notable fall in retail."

ING economist James Smith said: "Not all of the latest weakness in UK GDP is explained away by September's extra bank holiday, and we're expecting further declines in output over the coming quarters.

"As the cost-of-living squeeze continues, we expect a 2% hit to GDP by next summer, though much depends on how the government's energy support evolves between now and then."

In equity markets, Asia-focused Prudential was the standout gainer on the FTSE 100 on news of easing Covid restrictions in China.

Miners were boosted by the news, with Anglo American, Antofagasta, Rio Tinto and Glencore all up, while luxury fashion brand Burberry - whose biggest market is China - also rallied.

Elsewhere, M&G was lifted by an initiation at ‘buy’ at Jefferies.

Insurer Beazley ticked higher as it reported a 22% rise in gross premiums for the first nine months of the year and said initial estimated losses from Hurricane Ian would be $120m.

On the downside, GSK fell after it said the second-line application of one of its cancer treatments will be limited following a request by the US regulators. The first-line application of Zejula - a maintenance treatment for ovarian, fallopian tube and peritoneal cancer for patients who have had a response to platinum-based chemotherapy - remains unchanged, however.

Admiral was also in the red after German reinsurer Munich Re cut its stake in the London-listed insurer.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,404.37 0.39%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,562.63 0.96%
techMARK (TASX) 4,391.57 -0.19%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Prudential (PRU) 989.00p 6.39%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 2,072.00p 4.88%
Anglo American (AAL) 3,281.00p 4.76%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 745.00p 4.46%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,410.00p 4.33%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 5,362.00p 4.16%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 371.40p 3.98%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 88.82p 3.33%
M&G (MNG) 191.10p 3.13%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 1,260.50p 2.44%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

GSK (GSK) 1,380.40p -1.97%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,254.00p -1.88%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 10,988.00p -1.52%
Admiral Group (ADM) 2,054.00p -1.49%
Vodafone Group (VOD) 104.40p -1.29%
Pearson (PSON) 951.20p -1.04%
Relx plc (REL) 2,354.00p -0.97%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,075.00p -0.86%
Auto Trader Group (AUTO) 566.40p -0.81%
Mondi (MNDI) 1,582.00p -0.72%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Molten Ventures (GROW) 452.80p 9.00%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 2,337.00p 5.37%
Liontrust Asset Management (LIO) 1,146.00p 5.14%
Auction Technology Group (ATG) 921.00p 5.02%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 1,012.00p 4.12%
Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 206.00p 4.04%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 69.40p 3.89%
Domino's Pizza Group (DOM) 266.00p 3.66%
Edinburgh Worldwide Inv Trust (EWI) 187.20p 3.65%
Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) 126.30p 3.36%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Apax Global Alpha Limited (APAX) 167.40p -1.88%
Tate & Lyle (TATE) 724.60p -1.87%
Hilton Food Group (HFG) 550.00p -1.79%
BBGI Global Infrastructure S.A. NPV (DI) (BBGI) 165.00p -1.79%
Vietnam Enterprise Investments (DI) (VEIL) 530.00p -1.49%
JPMorgan European Discovery Trust (JEDT) 399.50p -1.36%
Greencoat UK Wind (UKW) 155.30p -1.21%
Balfour Beatty (BBY) 307.20p -1.03%
HGCapital Trust (HGT) 366.50p -0.95%
Synthomer (SYNT) 141.90p -0.91%