London close: Stocks edge up even as the pound leaps higher

London stocks edged higher on Monday, even as reports that the Prime Minister was on her way to Strasbourg for last minute talks with European Commission president Jean Claude Juncker sent the pound flying higher.

The FTSE 100 was up 0.37% to 7,130.62 as sterling jumped 1.0% against the US dollar to 1.31440. It was a similar story versus the euro with Sterling up 0.99% at 1.1700, having earlier tumbled to 1.1526.

Earlier in the session, a number of reports had suggested the Prime Minister was looking to downgrade Tuesday's promised 'meaningful vote' to a provisional vote, in a gambit to keep the pressure on Brussels

But a 10 Downing Street spokesman said the meaningful vote on May's Brexit deal will go ahead as planned, with the motion to be published later on Monday.

Most political commentators appeared to expect that May's withdrawal proposal would not succeed unless she obtained concessions from the EU on the Irish backstop, but confidence in what the end-game would be appeared to be quite low.

David Cheetham, chief market analyst at XTB, said a defeat in Tuesday's vote would trigger two further votes before Thursday, first on whether MPs oppose a no-deal and then whether they would support an extension of Article 50.

"If this all plays out as expected then it would pave the way for an extension of the current deadline beyond 29 March. This path has been seen as favourable for the pound ever since the currency rallied back in January when the PM lost the first meaningful vote, with the consensus view being that it supports a softer version of Brexit or perhaps even no Brexit at all (Due to time constraints a 2nd referendum would require an extension of Article 50).

"However, there remains a nagging feeling that this line of thought is more than a little presumptuous, and it would not be entirely surprising if a different sequence of events played out. For instance, the PM’s position remains precarious to say the least, and should she be forced out of number 10 and replaced by a more hardline Brexiteer, then the chances of a no-deal Brexit would rise significantly and could cause an angry reaction in the pound."

On the corporate front, deal news was in focus as challenger banks Charter Court Financial Services and OneSavings Bank confirmed that they are in advanced talks about a potential merger to create a “leading specialist mortgage lender in the UK”.

The deal would be structured so that OSB would acquire Charter Court and its shareholders would end up with 55% of the enlarged group, with OSB chief executive Andy Golding continuing in that role. Shares in both companies rose sharply on the news.

UAE-based private healthcare operator NMC Health was a high riser as Barclays included the stock in its European Top Picks list, saying that management has demonstrated its ability to strike very attractive deals whilst not losing sight of the underlying business.

Doorstep lender Provident Financial was in the green as it said the £1.3bn hostile bid from Non-Standard Finance risks jeopardising the company's turnaround after its smaller rival published its offer document.

On the downside, Persimmon fell after The Times said over the weekend that it has launched a lawsuit against BT over unpaid work on hundreds of its sites. BT was also in the red.

Cairn Energy was under the cosh after saying it expects the arbitration process against the Indian authorities regarding its $1.4bn compensation claim to take longer than initially thought.

Integrated shipping services provider Clarksons retreated as it posted a better-than-expected full-year profit but sounded a cautious note on the outlook due in part to Brexit uncertainties and the impact of the trade war.

Credit checking firm Experian was knocked lower by a downgrade to 'sell' from 'hold' at Deutsche Bank, which highlighted a less supportive market and said it would be very difficult for the group to replicate the growth seen over the last 12 months.

Ocado overcame the early losses which ensued after newspapers reported on an HSBC survey showing that almost a quarter of its customers might stop shopping there if Waitrose products were not available.

Fashion brand Superdry was weaker as it urged its shareholders to vote against the appointments of co-founder Julian Dunkerton and Peter Williams as director at a general meeting due to be held in April.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,130.62 0.37%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,093.06 0.24%
techMARK (TASX) 3,481.39 0.44%

FTSE 100 - Risers

NMC Health (NMC) 2,684.00p 3.71%
Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) 5,704.85p 3.17%
Smurfit Kappa Group (SKG) 2,172.00p 2.84%
Schroders (SDR) 2,609.00p 2.68%
Evraz (EVR) 595.20p 2.66%
Standard Life Aberdeen (SLA) 244.60p 2.64%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 496.80p 2.10%
Croda International (CRDA) 4,854.20p 2.07%
Spirax-Sarco Engineering (SPX) 7,050.00p 2.02%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 940.00p 1.80%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Persimmon (PSN) 2,187.00p -2.71%
Admiral Group (ADM) 2,094.00p -1.87%
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,586.00p -1.73%
Auto Trader Group (AUTO) 469.10p -1.68%
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 764.20p -1.65%
Informa (INF) 711.80p -1.63%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 177.95p -1.19%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,112.50p -1.17%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 3,851.00p -1.15%
Whitbread (WTB) 4,809.00p -0.99%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Charter Court Financial Services Group (CCFS) 340.60p 11.16%
OneSavings Bank (OSB) 410.40p 10.92%
Genus (GNS) 2,366.00p 4.97%
Sophos Group (SOPH) 329.40p 4.08%
G4S (GFS) 207.70p 3.63%
Inmarsat (ISAT) 453.40p 3.26%
Diploma (DPLM) 1,441.00p 3.22%
Tullow Oil (TLW) 225.50p 2.96%
IWG (IWG) 260.60p 2.64%
RHI Magnesita N.V. (DI) (RHIM) 4,400.00p 2.57%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Clarkson (CKN) 2,225.00p -12.55%
Cairn Energy (CNE) 174.70p -10.96%
Sirius Minerals (SXX) 17.81p -9.21%
Indivior (INDV) 111.00p -3.81%
Bakkavor Group (BAKK) 131.20p -3.12%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 92.38p -2.90%
Syncona Limited NPV (SYNC) 262.50p -2.78%
Ultra Electronics Holdings (ULE) 1,505.00p -2.60%
Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 380.20p -2.41%
Spirent Communications (SPT) 148.40p -2.37%