London close: FTSE jogs higher on miners as political risk jitters fade

Equities in London went for a jog higher on Tuesday thanks to gains in mining stocks and a subdued sterling, as jitters about political risk fade for the time being.

The FTSE 100 ended Tuesday up 0.57% to 7,342.21, and the FTSE 250 closed up 0.44% to 19,816.95. These were accompanied higher by several European and US indices.

"The calming of political nerves saw stocks gain ground as volatility crumbled by the wayside," said Jasper Lawler, senior market analyst at London Capital Group.

"An unwind of the profit-taking-based losses from Monday and some better economic data out of Germany helped European stocks nudge higher."

Lawler observed miners were top risers in London, suggesting basic resource shares may be a safer place to be than the underlying commodities, which were undergoing a bit of a shakeout.

Companies with a stake in a higher volatility environment -- such as banks and the London stock Exchange -- were underperformers. Micro Focus was bottom of the pile after merger-partner HPE revenues dropped 10%.

Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK, said European stock markets had rebounded today with a firmer tone in the more cyclical areas of the market.

"An air of almost indifference (is) starting to descend on investors, as concerns about political risk fade into the background," he said.

"Despite further weakness in iron ore prices mining stocks have enjoyed a welcome respite, with some signs of a potential short term base which has helped underpin the FTSE 100."

On the FTSE 100, financials and property stocks did well, while in a very short list of blue-chip fallers it was several banks and utilities in focus.

Centrica and SSE fell after PM Theresa May pledged to introduce a cap on domestic energy prices that could see prices drop for around 17m families if she was re-elected on 8 June.

One of advertising behemoth WPP's digital agencies has looked to strengthen its e-commerce offering with the acquisition of Atlanta-based Marketplace Ignition.

Software company Micro Focus International tanked after saying revenues at the HPE Software business with which it is merging were down around 10% in the quarter to the end of April.

Elsewhere, William Hill was up but well off earlier highs, with first quarter growth in wagering and revenue across all four of the bookmaker's divisions, although margins tightened.

Outsourcer Mitie edged higher as it announced that Derek Mapp will take over as chairman from Roger Matthews at the annual general meeting on 26 July, when Matthews will step down after 11 years of service.

Hiscox gained ground after saying it will establish a new European unit in Luxembourg due to Brexit and reporting a 17% rise in gross premiums to £751.2m, while Paysafe gained ground as it reported in-line trading for the first quarter.

Investors were also mulling the latest figures from the British Retail Consortium, which showed a larger than expected rise in UK retail sales for April.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,342.21 0.57%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,816.95 0.44%
techMARK (TASX) 3,559.41 0.75%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 890.00p 4.64%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 4,710.50p 2.28%
Glencore (GLEN) 290.90p 2.27%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,150.00p 2.22%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 4,234.00p 1.90%
Fresnillo (FRES) 1,426.00p 1.78%
Shire Plc (SHP) 4,663.50p 1.71%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 720.90p 1.66%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 3,139.00p 1.62%
Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) 8,375.00p 1.52%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Micro Focus International (MCRO) 2,490.00p -5.65%
GKN (GKN) 352.80p -1.73%
SSE (SSE) 1,431.00p -1.24%
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 263.30p -1.24%
Centrica (CNA) 200.00p -1.19%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 69.02p -0.62%
Informa (INF) 656.00p -0.53%
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 1,176.00p -0.51%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,979.00p -0.50%
Persimmon (PSN) 2,402.00p -0.46%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Euromoney Institutional Investor (ERM) 1,074.00p 5.22%
AO World (AO.) 153.90p 4.98%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 157.80p 4.92%
Carillion (CLLN) 226.10p 4.87%
Vectura Group (VEC) 149.90p 3.95%
Marshalls (MSLH) 393.60p 3.31%
Paragon Group Of Companies (PAG) 486.00p 3.03%
Renishaw (RSW) 3,606.00p 2.94%
Supergroup (SGP) 1,613.00p 2.74%
Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 442.00p 2.67%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Travis Perkins (TPK) 1,630.00p -3.89%
Allied Minds (ALM) 148.10p -3.52%
Nex Group (NXG) 607.50p -2.57%
AA (AA.) 259.00p -2.34%
Daejan Holdings (DJAN) 6,735.00p -2.18%
Aggreko (AGK) 847.50p -2.14%
Hastings Group Holdings (HSTG) 304.30p -1.68%
UK Commercial Property Trust (UKCM) 86.50p -1.54%
ZPG Plc (ZPG) 367.10p -1.37%
BGEO Group (BGEO) 3,658.00p -1.32%