London close: Stocks mixed as investors digest fresh US data

dl city of london square mile financial district generic 02 — Sharecast / Nicole Rathmayr via Pexels

London's stock markets closed in a mixed state on Thursday, as investors reacted to fresh economic data from the United States, including the latest GDP and jobless claims numbers.

Whitbread

2,923.00p

16:40 23/12/24

0.31%

9.00p

The FTSE 100 index rose 0.43% to 8,379.64, while the FTSE 250 edged down 0.17% to21,031.08.

In currency markets, sterling was last down 0.23% on the dollar to trade at $1.3160, while it managed gains of 0.19% against the euro, changing hands at €1.1884.

“There is no stopping the equity buying frenzy as upwardly revised US second-quarter GDP growth and a rebound in US corporate profits led to several US indices closing in on their record highs,” said IG senior technical analyst Axel Rudolph.

“German inflation falling more-than-expected helped propel the country's DAX 40 stock index to a new record high.

“The dollar also saw a sharp rebound from its 13-month low versus other major currencies.”

Rudolph added that oil prices jumped around 2% as Israel continued its West Bank raids, despite the UN calling for de-escalation.

“Precious metals like gold and silver also rose.”

US GDP grows more than first thought in Q2, jobless claims fall

In economic news, revised estimates from the Bureau of Economic Analysis revealed that the US economy grew at an annual rate of 3.0% in the second quarter, more than double the 1.4% growth in the first quarter.

That surpassed economists' expectations, who had anticipated no change from the initial 2.8% estimate.

The upward revision was largely due to stronger-than-expected consumer spending and adjusted import figures.

However, there were downward adjustments in several areas including non-residential fixed investment, exports, and government spending.

Still stateside, new unemployment claims in the US fell by 2,000 to 231,000 in the week ended 24 August, aligning closely with market expectations.

The decline supported the view of a softening labour market, following a significant downward revision in nonfarm payrolls for the prior year.

Continuing claims rose by 13,000 to 1.86 million, while the four-week moving average decreased by 4,750 to 231,500.

The non-seasonally adjusted monthly claims fell by 628 to 191,835.

Pending home sales in the US meanwhile fell 5.5% in July, reaching a record low, according to the National Association of Realtors.

The decline erased the 4.8% increase seen in June and came as a surprise to economists who had forecast a modest gain of 0.5%.

On home shores, UK car production fell by 14.4% in July to 65,478 vehicles, impacted by model changeovers and supply chain issues, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

Despite the overall drop, production of electrified vehicles remained relatively stable, representing 37.5% of total output.

Domestic production was down 5.1%, but over 80% of vehicles produced were exported, with the EU being the largest market.

On an annual basis, domestic production increased by 14.8%, while export volumes decreased by 14.3%.

Finally on data, the eurozone's economic sentiment indicator (ESI) unexpectedly increased to 96.6 in August from 96 in July, surpassing expectations.

The rise was driven by improved confidence in services, industry, and retail trade.

Notable improvements were seen in France, Spain, and the Netherlands, while Germany and Italy experienced declines in sentiment.

Whitbread jumps on upgrade, Drax falls into the red

On London’s equity markets, Premier Inn owner Whitbread rose following an upgrade to ‘outperform’ by Bernstein.

Close Brothers Group also saw an increase after RBC Capital Markets upgraded the stock to ‘outperform.’

Similarly, Bunzl benefited from an RBC upgrade to ‘sector perform,’ with a revised price target of 3,350p, up from 2,700p, due to improved revenue and margin forecasts.

Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, enjoyed a boost after Jefferies upgraded its rating to ‘buy,’ reflecting optimism about the company’s performance.

Drax Group's shares ended lower, reversing earlier gains.

The movements followed the conclusion of Ofgem's investigation into the company’s biomass data related to Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs), which raised concerns about sustainability criteria.

IG Group Holdings experienced a downturn after co-founders Tom Sosnoff and Scott Sheridan sold 6.5 million shares, approximately 1.8% of the company’s share capital, to institutional investors.

The placing followed IG’s acquisition of Tastytrade in 2021.

Diageo and Glencore both saw declines as they traded ex-dividend, meaning investors were no longer entitled to their recent dividend payouts.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,379.64 0.43%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 21,031.08 -0.17%
techMARK (TASX) 4,917.40 0.44%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Spirax Group (SPX) 7,700.00p 3.91%
Whitbread (WTB) 2,937.00p 3.71%
Bunzl (BNZL) 3,556.00p 2.72%
Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (PSH) 3,748.00p 2.63%
Convatec Group (CTEC) 238.40p 2.58%
Weir Group (WEIR) 1,998.00p 2.51%
easyJet (EZJ) 479.20p 2.15%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,830.00p 1.86%
BAE Systems (BA.) 1,373.00p 1.85%
Halma (HLMA) 2,603.00p 1.84%