London close: Shares end slightly higher following RBS numbers, US GDP

London stocks ended the session slightly higher, underpinned by a weaker pound and well-received US GDP data and third-quarter earnings from RBS.

The FTSE 100 ended up by 0.25% or 18.53 points at 7,505.03, while the pound was down 0.34% against the dollar at 1.3114 and 0.22% stronger versus the euro at 1.1319.

IG analyst Joshua Mahony said: "Despite fading towards the close, the FTSE has enjoyed yet another day in the green, following on from yesterday’s welcome recovery. The focus for the day has been on the dollar, which has had an incredible run, with the dollar index breaking into a three-month high thanks to euro weakness and the continued outperformance of US economic data.

"Today’s impressive 3% GDP reading did little to quell the greenback, surged higher yet again, as traders mulled over the heightened prospect of a December rate hike. With the BoJ, FOMC and BoE all up to the plate next week, the focus shifts back onto the central banks after a week of heavy hitting US corporate earnings figures."

US third-quarter GDP slowed far less than expected over the three months to September, from a 3.1% clip in the second quarter to 3.0% in the third, easily exceedingthe 1.8% pace economists had penciled in.

Market participants were also continuing to keep an eye on Spain, where Catalan nationalist parties issued a declaration of independence.

In corporate news, Royal Bank of Scotland was in the black after saying it swung to a profit of £392m in the third quarter versus a loss of £469m in the same period a year ago as restructuring and conduct costs fell.

Specialty chemicals group Elementis rallied after saying it delivered "another good revenue performance" in the third quarter and that it remains on track overall, while insurer Hastings nudged up as it reported a rise in nine-month gross written premiums.

In broker note action, Compass was boosted by an upgrade to 'outperform' at RBC Capital Markets, while Aviva was higher after Barclays upped the stock to 'overweight'.

On the downside, British Airways and Iberia parent International Consolidated Airlines Group flew lower despite reporting reported a 20.7% jump in third-quarter operating profit to €1.46bn and saying operating profit for the full year should come in at around €3bn before exceptional items.

Shares in Tullow Oil gushed lowerafter the company said its Araku-1 exploration well in Suriname found no significant reservoir quality rocks and is now being plugged and abandoned.

IT infrastructure services provider Computacenter reversed earlier gains to trade down after saying overall revenue jumped 27% year-on-year in the third quarter, to £931m, while temporary power provider Drax also turned lower as it announced the appointment of Den Jones as interim chief financial officer from 1 November.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,505.03 0.25%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,146.06 -0.09%
techMARK (TASX) 3,506.59 0.18%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 6,845.00p 3.09%
Experian (EXPN) 1,598.00p 2.77%
Compass Group (CPG) 1,638.00p 2.38%
Merlin Entertainments (MERL) 377.70p 2.27%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 964.50p 2.17%
Shire Plc (SHP) 3,599.50p 2.17%
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 285.80p 1.71%
Diageo (DGE) 2,608.00p 1.68%
BP (BP.) 497.90p 1.61%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 443.60p 1.58%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 623.50p -6.94%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 3,807.00p -3.47%
easyJet (EZJ) 1,273.00p -3.19%
Glencore (GLEN) 367.20p -3.05%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 956.50p -3.04%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 201.90p -2.65%
ITV (ITV) 164.00p -2.55%
Convatec Group (CTEC) 199.60p -2.44%
Persimmon (PSN) 2,831.00p -2.04%
Worldpay Group (WPG) 400.50p -2.01%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Polar Capital Technology Trust (PCT) 1,135.00p 3.28%
Softcat (SCT) 517.00p 2.99%
Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 277.00p 2.97%
Travis Perkins (TPK) 1,542.00p 2.46%
Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 254.80p 2.40%
Greencore Group (GNC) 198.30p 2.37%
Tate & Lyle (TATE) 653.00p 2.27%
BTG (BTG) 751.50p 2.24%
William Hill (WMH) 249.00p 2.22%
Elementis (ELM) 286.40p 2.21%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Ferrexpo (FXPO) 256.40p -4.83%
Inmarsat (ISAT) 589.50p -3.91%
Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 814.50p -3.84%
Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 552.50p -3.73%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 977.50p -2.88%
Auto Trader Group (AUTO) 343.00p -2.61%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 3,171.00p -2.57%
Galliford Try (GFRD) 1,240.00p -2.52%
Tullow Oil (TLW) 178.00p -2.41%
esure Group (ESUR) 272.00p -2.26%