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Stocks rise after Chinese data
Market Movers
techMARK 2,059.25 +0.22%
FTSE 100 5,778.71 +0.46%
FTSE 250 11,815.83 +0.28%
UK
stocks started Thursday's session with moderate gains after some upbeat
manufacturing figures from China, though trade is expected to be light
with US markets closed for Thanksgiving.
The 'flash' HSBC Chinese purchasing managers’ index for the month of October came in at 50.4, up from 49.5 for the previous month. That constitutes a thirteen month high.
Financial sales trader Matthew Nelson from Spreadex said :"News that
manufacturing output had risen in China for the first time in more than a
year helped to underpin sentiment in the East and the figures have also
aided the prospects of UK metals and energy companies with the bulk of
this morning’s shift coming from the two sectors."
Markus
Huber, the head of German HNW trading at ETX Capital, said this morning:
"Also some relief has provided the news that Israel and Hamas have
agreed to a temporary ceasefire, especially after yesterday’s
bomb attack on an Israeli bus increased the likelihood that the conflict
might could spiral out of complete control."
He said that trading volumes are likely to be well below average today with equity and bonds markets closed Stateside for the Thanksgiving holiday.
"Furthermore traders and investors most likely will remain on the
sidelines as they have resigned themselves to the fact that any major
progress what averting the 'fiscal cliff' and plugging the latest
financial hole in Greece is concerned is rather unlikely before next
week," he said.
FTSE 100: SABMiller jumps after first-half results
SABMiller,
one of the world's largest brewers, managed to beat analysts' forecasts
for revenue and earnings in the first half as its hiked its interim
dividend by 12%. Investors shrugged off the group's comments that it has
seen a "moderation of growth" in some emerging markets.
Mining stocks were also performing well this morning on the back of the Chinese manufacturing data: Vedanta, EVRAZ, ENRC, Glencore, Xstrata and Kazakhmys were among the highest risers early on.
Following a sharp fall yesterday after its first-half figures, chemicals group Johnson Matthey
rebounded after Credit Suisse upgraded the stock from 'neutral' to
'outperform' and lifted its target from 2,300p to 2,400p. The broker
said: "We think the short-term negatives have now been flagged and are
in the share price. Mid-term, we forecast good growth, and believe the
shares are at a reasonable price."
Meanwhile, global insurer RSA was in demand after appointing a Lloyds Banking Group executive, Martin Scicluna, as its new Chairman.
Consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser gained after signing a definitive merger agreement with healthy snack maker Schiff Nutrition International.
FTSE 250: Man Group provides a lift early on
Fund manager Man Group
advanced this morning after the Financial Times reported that it has
moved $1.5bn of its flagship fund AHL into a new portfolio in order to
raise returns.
Home emergency repairs group HomeServe was out of favour after Liberum Capital downgraded its rating on the shares to 'hold' and cut its target from 260p to 250p.
Defence group Cobham
rose after its aviation division secured a multi-million dollar
extension on a contract to fly miners to remote parts of Western
Australia.
Residential property owner-manager Grainger
was higher despite cautioning that it expects subdued market conditions
to persist through 2013. The company reported a 3.2% rise in net asset
value per share in the year to September 30th.
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Stocks rise after Chinese data
Market Movers
techMARK 2,059.25 +0.22%
FTSE 100 5,778.71 +0.46%
FTSE 250 11,815.83 +0.28%
UK
stocks started Thursday's session with moderate gains after some upbeat
manufacturing figures from China, though trade is expected to be light
with US markets closed for Thanksgiving.
The 'flash' HSBC Chinese purchasing managers’ index for the month of October came in at 50.4, up from 49.5 for the previous month. That constitutes a thirteen month high.
Financial sales trader Matthew Nelson from Spreadex said :"News that
manufacturing output had risen in China for the first time in more than a
year helped to underpin sentiment in the East and the figures have also
aided the prospects of UK metals and energy companies with the bulk of
this morning’s shift coming from the two sectors."
Markus
Huber, the head of German HNW trading at ETX Capital, said this morning:
"Also some relief has provided the news that Israel and Hamas have
agreed to a temporary ceasefire, especially after yesterday’s
bomb attack on an Israeli bus increased the likelihood that the conflict
might could spiral out of complete control."
He said that trading volumes are likely to be well below average today with equity and bonds markets closed Stateside for the Thanksgiving holiday.
"Furthermore traders and investors most likely will remain on the
sidelines as they have resigned themselves to the fact that any major
progress what averting the 'fiscal cliff' and plugging the latest
financial hole in Greece is concerned is rather unlikely before next
week," he said.
FTSE 100: SABMiller jumps after first-half results
SABMiller,
one of the world's largest brewers, managed to beat analysts' forecasts
for revenue and earnings in the first half as its hiked its interim
dividend by 12%. Investors shrugged off the group's comments that it has
seen a "moderation of growth" in some emerging markets.
Mining stocks were also performing well this morning on the back of the Chinese manufacturing data: Vedanta, EVRAZ, ENRC, Glencore, Xstrata and Kazakhmys were among the highest risers early on.
Following a sharp fall yesterday after its first-half figures, chemicals group Johnson Matthey
rebounded after Credit Suisse upgraded the stock from 'neutral' to
'outperform' and lifted its target from 2,300p to 2,400p. The broker
said: "We think the short-term negatives have now been flagged and are
in the share price. Mid-term, we forecast good growth, and believe the
shares are at a reasonable price."
Meanwhile, global insurer RSA was in demand after appointing a Lloyds Banking Group executive, Martin Scicluna, as its new Chairman.
Consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser gained after signing a definitive merger agreement with healthy snack maker Schiff Nutrition International.
FTSE 250: Man Group provides a lift early on
Fund manager Man Group
advanced this morning after the Financial Times reported that it has
moved $1.5bn of its flagship fund AHL into a new portfolio in order to
raise returns.
Home emergency repairs group HomeServe was out of favour after Liberum Capital downgraded its rating on the shares to 'hold' and cut its target from 260p to 250p.
Defence group Cobham
rose after its aviation division secured a multi-million dollar
extension on a contract to fly miners to remote parts of Western
Australia.
Residential property owner-manager Grainger
was higher despite cautioning that it expects subdued market conditions
to persist through 2013. The company reported a 3.2% rise in net asset
value per share in the year to September 30th.
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| AIM/Small Cap Report |
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FTSE 100 - Risers
SABMiller (SAB) 2,767.50p +5.11%
Evraz (EVR) 234.00p +3.40%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,712.00p +1.81%
Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,075.00p +1.70%
Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 273.50p +1.67%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,225.00p +1.60%
Capital Shopping Centres Group (CSCG) 343.60p +1.60%
Kazakhmys (KAZ) 693.00p +1.46%
Xstrata (XTA) 1,011.50p +1.45%
Wolseley (WOS) 2,791.00p +1.42%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Tate & Lyle (TATE) 761.50p -0.39%
Shire Plc (SHP) 1,781.00p -0.34%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 45.63p -0.24%
Severn Trent (SVT) 1,566.00p -0.19%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,437.50p -0.17%
Experian (EXPN) 1,019.00p -0.10%
SSE (SSE) 1,395.00p -0.07%
Old Mutual (OML) 169.30p -0.06%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Dixons Retail (DXNS) 26.06p +4.24%
Man Group (EMG) 76.15p +4.24%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 213.50p +2.69%
Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group (JLT) 760.50p +1.60%
Kier Group (KIE) 1,158.00p +1.58%
Fenner (FENR) 380.40p +1.44%
Bank of Georgia Holdings (BGEO) 1,097.00p +1.39%
ICAP (IAP) 293.80p +1.38%
Tullett Prebon (TLPR) 226.60p +1.30%
Home Retail Group (HOME) 106.10p +1.24%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 478.50p -2.74%
Talvivaara Mining Company (TALV) 101.50p -2.22%
Euromoney Institutional Investor (ERM) 774.00p -1.84%
Perform Group (PER) 390.00p -1.76%
Redrow (RDW) 156.94p -1.48%
PayPoint (PAY) 867.88p -0.98%
Grainger (GRI) 114.00p -0.87%
QinetiQ Group (QQ.) 195.00p -0.76%
RIT Capital Partners (RCP) 1,126.51p -0.75%
Unite Group (UTG) 264.20p -0.68%
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| European broker round-up |
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| FTSE 100 | Euronext | Dax perf | CAC 40 |
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Carrefour:
Barclays Capital reiterates a NEUTRAL rating with a price target of
€16.10. CM-CIC reiterates a BUY rating with a price target of €23.50.
Dia: UBS reiterates a SELL rating and raises price target to €4.30 from €3.40.
Renault: Cheuvreux reiterates coverage at UNDERWEIGHT with a price target of €4.
Siemens: Deutsche Bank downgrades to SELL from hold and lowers price target to €65 from €75.
UK Event Calendar
INTERIMS
Dart Group, Mothercare, SABMiller, Sepura, Young & Co's Brewery 'A' Shares
INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
Goals Soccer Centres, Hansteen Holdings, Smart Metering Systems
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
Consumer Confidence Indicator (EU) (10:00)
Q3
ADC African Development Corporation GmbH, Avengardco Investments Public
Ltd GDR, Bridge Energy Asa, Wentworth Resources Ltd (CDI)
GMS
Impellam Group
FINALS
Daily Mail and General Trust A (Non.V), Grainger, Phytopharm
ANNUAL REPORT
Firestone Diamonds
AGMS
Close Brothers Group
UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
CBI Industrial Trends Surveys (11:00)
FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
Thorpe (F.W.)
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| US Market Report |
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Gaza Ceasefire Contributes To Modest Strength On Wall Street
After
initially showing a lack of direction, stock moved modestly higher over
the course of the trading day on Wednesday. The markets benefited from a
positive reaction to news that Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire
in Gaza.
The major averages moved roughly sideways going into the close, hovering in positive territory. The Dow rose 48.38 points or 0.4 percent to 12,836.89, the Nasdaq climbed 9.87 points or 0.3 percent to 2,926.55 and the S&P 500 edged up 3.22 points or 0.2 percent to 1,391.03.
The
choppy trading seen early in the session came on the heels of a mixed
batch of U.S. economic data, including reports showing a drop in jobless
claims and a substantial downward revision to consumer sentiment.
Before the start of trading, the Labor Department
released a report showing a notable decrease in initial jobless claims
in the week ended November 17th, although the data continued to reflect
distortions due to Hurricane Sandy.
The report showed that
jobless claims fell to 410,000 from the previous week's revised figure
of 451,000, coming in line with analyst estimates.
Meanwhile, a
separate report from Thomson Reuters and the University of Michigan
showed that consumer sentiment improved by substantially less than
initially estimated in the month of November.
The report said the consumer sentiment
index for November came in at 82.7, down sharply from the preliminary
reading of 84.9. With the downward revision, the index was only just
above the final October reading of 82.6.
Stocks moved more
firmly into positive territory following the news that Israel and Hamas
agreed to a ceasefire following an Egyptian-mediated peace negotiation
to end the weeklong cross-border hostilities that led to the deaths of
at least 150 people.
The deal was announced by Egyptian foreign minister Mohamed Kamel Amr at a joint press conference with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Cairo.
Lingering
concerns about the situation in Europe helped to limit the upside for
the markets, however, as finance ministers once again delayed a decision
on providing additional financial assistance to Greece.
A lack
of volume also contributed to choppy trading on Wall Street, with many
traders getting a head start on tomorrow's Thanksgiving Day holiday.
Sector News
While
many of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves,
considerable strength was visible among gold stocks. The NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index advanced by 1.5 percent, climbing further off last Thursday's three-month closing low.
The strength among gold stocks came amid an increase by the price of the precious metal, with gold for December delivery climbing $4.60 to $1,728.20 an ounce.
Networking stocks
also showed a strong move to the upside, driving the NYSE Arca
Networking Index up by 1.2 percent. Infinera (INFN) helped to lead the
sector higher, rising by 4.6 percent.
Electronic storage, biotechnology, and software stocks also saw notable strength on the day, although buying interest was relatively subdued.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in another mixed performance on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.9 percent, while Australia's All Ordinaries Index fell by 0.4 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries moved
moderately lower, pulling back further off last week's highs. As a
result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite
of its price, rose by 3.1 basis points to 1.687 percent.
Looking Ahead
Following
the Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday, trading activity is likely to
be subdued during the abbreviated trading session on Friday as many
traders remain away from their desks.
| Thursday newspaper round-up |
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Middle-East ceasefire, Supermarkets, Standard Life...
Israel and the Islamist Hamas group agreed to an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire
on Wednesday, ending a bloody eight-day conflict in and around the Gaza
Strip that has claimed the lives of at least 152 Palestinians and five
Israelis. The truce was announced in Cairo by Mohammed Kamel Amr, the
Egyptian foreign minister, in a joint press conference with Hillary
Clinton, the US secretary of state. Mr Amr said the recent diplomatic
effort had produced 'understandings to cease fire and restore calm and
halt the bloodshed that the last period has seen.' [Financial Times]
The chief executives of two of Britain’s biggest retailers
have written to the Government to seek an extension of Sunday trading
hours on December 23, which is expected to be the busiest shopping day
of the year. Andy Clarke of Asda and Dalton Philips of Morrisons
have sent a letter to Michael Fallon, the Business Minister, calling
for trading hours to be extended by up to two hours. The push for a
relaxation of trading hours by Britain’s second and fourth largest
supermarket groups follows lengthened hours during the Olympics and
Paralympics this summer. [The Telegraph]
Standard Life,
the Edinburgh-based insurance giant, has confirmed plans to cut 139
jobs as it restructures its UK business in preparation for radical
reforms in the pensions industry. The group said it needed to introduce
“more streamlined and flexible organisational structures” to meet the
twin challenges of the retail distribution review (RDR), which will ban
commission payments to financial advisers from next year, and new rules
forcing employers to provide pensions for all eligible members of staff.
[The Scotsman]
The Government is heading for the loss of its triple-A credit rating
and a breach of its debt target, one of the world’s leading fund
managers warned in the wake of a fresh deterioration in the public
finances. Myles Bradshaw, of Pimco, the world’s top bond fund, said the
odds were high that Britain would suffer a downgrade to its credit
rating in 2013, but he added that the Chancellor should not to “double
up” on austerity in order to prevent politically inconvenient breaches
of his short-term fiscal goals. [The Times]
Big banks
are good for Britain and must not be broken up, according to George
Osborne, as he argued the country’s largest lenders were beneficial to
society. The Chancellor warned that “aggressively” breaking up banks
would do little to benefit the UK and insisted the Government’s plans to
put in place a so-called “ring fence” to force banks to isolate their
riskier, investment banking businesses from their retail arm was the
right way to make the financial system safer. [The Telegraph]
Sir Philip Green, the owner of the fashion group Arcadia,
hopes to launch its first Topshop and Topman stores in China next year,
as the billionaire said retailers should focus on improving their
performance and stop "crying" about tough trading conditions on the high
street. The entrepreneur yesterday unveiled a leap in annual profits at
Arcadia, which also runs the Bhs and Burton brands, and revealed he is
plotting a "major push" of its fledgling operation in the US. [The Independent]
The energy regulator, Ofgem,
failed to implement its own consultants' recommendation a year ago to
tighten up the way energy companies report trading activities – and
admits it may now have to revisit the issue. The energy watchdog also
confirmed it was tipped off about possible manipulation of the wholesale
market on 17 October – more than three weeks before the energy
secretary, Ed Davey, was told. Caroline Flint MP, the shadow energy and
climate change secretary, who has already called for Ofgem to be
scrapped for a tougher regulator, said the public was owed a proper
explanation of what was going on. [The Guardian]
Hopes were rising in Brussels that an unlikely deal with the UK
over the EU’s long-term budget was taking shape, although the chief
negotiator was trying to resolve a deluge of last-minute complaints from
other countries on the eve of what could be a gruelling summit. The
cautious optimism about the UK represents a significant shift: David
Cameron, the prime minister, was seen as the biggest obstacle to a deal
on the budget, which will cover roughly €1 trillion in spending from
2014 to 2020. The changed mood reflects the encouraging reception that
British officials have given to the latest proposal from Herman Van
Rompuy, the European Council president. The draft set a ceiling of
€940bn for payments over the seven-year period, a €3bn reduction from
the current long-term budget. [Financial Times]
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