Sector movers: Miners, Industrial metals lead gains

Upbeat data on the most recent trends in China's credit dynamics lifted the prices of most metals, delivering a boost to miners' share prices.

So-called Total Social Financing in China jumped from 488bn yuan in July to 1,470bn yuan in August, according to the country's central bank, easily dwarfing the consensus estimate for 900bn yuan.

"A renewed pick-up in credit growth last month will add to the growing sense among investors that the near-term outlook for China's economy is fairly bright," Capital Economics's China economist Julian Evans-Pritchard said in a research note sent to clients.

Three-month LME-traded copper futures rose as a result, gaining 2.0% to $4,737.50 per metric tonne.

The rise in metals prices delivered a boost to miners, with several of them finishing at the top of the leaderboard on Wednesday.

Gains in Evraz buoyed the Industrial Metals & Mining sector gauge, as Fitch took the company's long-term debt rating off Watch Negative.

The ratings agency forecast steel prices would remain low over the short-term, projecting flat prices for 2017 and a gradual recovery beginning in 2018.

On the negative side of the ledger, housebuilders including Redrow were lower after new housing minister Gavin Barwell gave a strong indication of a material shifting in housing policy, hinting that controversial Starter Homes scheme will be scrapped and the government will pursue policies to expand the public sector and private sector rental markets.

Analyst Robin Hardy at Shore Capita pointed out that housebuilders instead used the various government stimulus measures to create a golden trading environment with substantial benefits for margins, returns, cash flow and dividends, said the new policy direction "likely to see a change in the dynamics of the house builders’ profitability especially if there is any adjustment to the scope and scale of Help-to-Buy".

Bio Oil retreated fresh US government data published on Wednesday revealing a 35,000 barrel increase in US oil output to 8.493m barrels a day, sending crude oil futures lower.

Top performing sectors so far today
Industrial Metals & Mining 1,283.29 +1.64%
Mining 11,108.85 +1.61%
Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology 14,299.06 +1.38%
Oil Equipment, Services & Distribution 14,688.13 +1.05%
Industrial Engineering 9,555.92 +0.97%

Bottom performing sectors so far today
Fixed Line Telecommunications 4,277.69 -1.15%
Household Goods & Home Construction 16,082.67 -1.07%
Real Estate Investment & Services 2,410.81 -0.89%
Oil & Gas Producers 6,876.46 -0.83%
Tobacco 54,806.58 -0.82%