London midday: Stocks tick higher as sterling dented by Brexit woes

London stocks had pushed into the green by midday on Wednesday, helped along by a weaker pound as investors mulled the prospect of more Brexit uncertainty.

The FTSE 100 was 0.4% higher at 7,243.71, while the pound was trading at a one-week low against the dollar, down 0.1% at 1.2862 and 0.1% firmer versus the euro at 1.1578, having slumped overnight.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson paused his Brexit bill on Tuesday after MPs voted in favour of his deal but rejected the PM's attempts to rush it through the Commons in three days. According to reports, Johnson will call for a general election if EU leaders agree to grant the UK a Brexit extension until January.

Joshua Mahony, senior market analyst at IG, said: "Should the EU choose to reject the request for an extension, we would be staring at a distinct possibility of a no-deal Brexit. However, with the EU likely to grant an extension, the length of that term will dictate whether we see Boris push for an election or just another move towards ratifying this deal.

"For markets at least, there is a feeling that a Boris Johnson driven no-deal scenario is less likely than ever. However, with the threat of a Tory/Brexit Party coalition in the event of an election, a no-deal scenario remains a possibility. Given the threat of the EU’s arch nemesis Nigel Farage gaining a foothold into negotiations, it looks likely that the EU will grant a short extension that incentivises another push for this deal rather than a general election."

In equity markets, Premier Inn owner Whitbread was the standout gainer on the top-flight index a day after the release of its interim results.

Antofagasta was also in the green as it backed its annual production and posted a rise in third-quarter copper production, but warned that protests in Chile would hit its operations. Gold miner Centamin was also trading higher after a well-received third-quarter production update.

On the downside, shares of precious metals miner Fresnillo slumped as it posted a decline in third-quarter silver and gold production and said annual production would be at the lower end of its target range.

IT infrastructure and services company Softcat was in the red even as it reported a rise in full-year profit and revenue and declared a special dividend.

Housebuilders were under the cosh amid Brexit concerns, with Berkeley Group, Barratt Developments and Persimmon all weaker.

Shore Capital analyst Robin Hardy said: "Uncertainty is a killer in the housing market and after the second vote yesterday, we have it now in spades.

"A likely delay past the end of the calendar year and the growing risk of an election now risks many potential buyers deferring until the start (or later) of 2020. This leaves all house builders with a potential hole in their sales, either contributing to FY2019 profits for calendar year end business this year or leaving order books potentially short for next year."

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,243.71 0.43%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,148.44 -0.17%
techMARK (TASX) 3,805.33 0.45%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Whitbread (WTB) 4,220.00p 2.30%
Evraz (EVR) 388.50p 2.18%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 872.00p 2.12%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 3,070.00p 2.06%
Croda International (CRDA) 4,818.00p 2.03%
Standard Life Aberdeen (SLA) 297.30p 1.99%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 2,718.50p 1.89%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,994.20p 1.74%
BHP Group (BHP) 1,645.40p 1.67%
Glencore (GLEN) 234.10p 1.58%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Fresnillo (FRES) 630.20p -3.05%
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,488.00p -2.36%
St James's Place (STJ) 1,021.00p -2.30%
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,726.50p -2.29%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 437.30p -1.91%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 4,459.00p -1.81%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 656.40p -1.76%
Aveva Group (AVV) 3,892.00p -1.57%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) 7,032.00p -1.37%
DCC (DCC) 7,006.00p -1.35%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Ferrexpo (FXPO) 135.68p 4.33%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 111.30p 3.97%
Renishaw (RSW) 3,365.96p 3.76%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 1,304.00p 3.33%
RHI Magnesita N.V. (DI) (RHIM) 3,658.00p 3.22%
Apax Global Alpha Limited (APAX) 162.50p 2.85%
Rathbone Brothers (RAT) 2,205.00p 2.80%
Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 452.70p 2.72%
Weir Group (WEIR) 1,377.00p 2.59%
Ascential (ASCL) 364.22p 2.42%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Sirius Minerals (SXX) 2.99p -4.31%
Dunelm Group (DNLM) 841.10p -3.93%
Ashmore Group (ASHM) 468.00p -3.47%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 55.00p -3.00%
Softcat (SCT) 916.00p -2.71%
AJ Bell (AJB) 375.50p -2.59%
Restaurant Group (RTN) 142.20p -2.34%
SSP Group (SSPG) 631.00p -2.32%
GVC Holdings (GVC) 857.00p -2.32%
CYBG (CYBG) 142.00p -2.30%