Sector movers: China chips in, life insurers continue rally
Positive reports about Sino-US trade talks gave extra impetus to the market mood on Friday.
Life insurers continued their recent rally, picking up a little extra steam as the market was carried higher on a wave of optimism about US-China trade talks.
China has offered to buy $1.0trn of US goods in a bid to reduce its trade surplus with America to zero by 2024, Bloomberg reported.
Construction and banks were two of the sectors to climb the highest on the more optimistic mood, both among the sectors to have hit a low in late December before steadily picking up since.
Oil companies were one of the big risers as crude prices steepened as an immediate reaction to the US-China reports. A barrel of Brent was up 2.6% to $62.78 and WTI up 3.1% to $53.69.
Despite trade worries having hit the auto sector, TI Fluid was holding back that sector, though Aston Martin was revving up.
Meanwhile, a 17% drop for security specialist Sophos off the back of disappointing quarterly numbers dragged sector peer Avast down and the software and computer services sector into the red, even though everyone else was in the green.
Top performing sectors so far today
Life Insurance +3.55%
Construction & Materials +2.98%
Oil & Gas Producers +2.94%
Fixed Line Telecommunications +2.79%
Banks +2.62%
Bottom performing sectors so far today
Forestry & Paper -0.30%
Automobiles & Parts -0.28%
Software & Computer Services -0.03%
Industrial Engineering 0.43%
Health Care Equipment & Services 0.69%
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 6,979.06 2.11%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 18,764.28 1.22%
techMARK (TASX) 3,395.98 1.44%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 231.75p 4.46%
Prudential (PRU) 1,513.00p 4.42%
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 247.00p 4.22%
GVC Holdings (GVC) 715.50p 4.15%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 169.00p 4.10%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,944.50p 4.04%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,495.00p 4.00%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 627.10p 4.00%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 856.00p 3.93%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 535.80p 3.72%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Ocado Group (OCDO) 883.00p -1.91%
Fresnillo (FRES) 885.00p -1.75%
easyJet (EZJ) 1,169.00p 0.00%
Bunzl (BNZL) 2,415.00p 0.12%
NMC Health (NMC) 2,738.00p 0.15%
DCC (DCC) 6,375.00p 0.24%
Mondi (MNDI) 1,811.50p 0.30%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 619.20p 0.55%
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,534.00p 0.66%
Micro Focus International (MCRO) 1,503.50p 0.67%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Entertainment One Limited (ETO) 389.80p 5.81%
Metro Bank (MTRO) 2,192.00p 5.69%
Bovis Homes Group (BVS) 1,007.00p 5.22%
CYBG (CYBG) 195.10p 4.72%
Premier Oil (PMO) 73.05p 4.51%
Aveva Group (AVV) 2,858.00p 4.38%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 558.80p 4.37%
Galliford Try (GFRD) 741.50p 4.29%
Greencoat UK Wind (UKW) 134.80p 4.17%
FDM Group (Holdings) (FDM) 840.00p 3.96%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Sophos Group (SOPH) 307.00p -18.48%
Ted Baker (TED) 1,787.00p -5.75%
Acacia Mining (ACA) 181.60p -2.34%
Superdry (SDRY) 509.00p -2.12%
TBC Bank Group (TBCG) 1,458.00p -1.75%
Coats Group (COA) 82.80p -1.66%
Avast (AVST) 283.95p -1.61%
Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 2,408.00p -1.47%
Cineworld Group (CINE) 255.00p -1.47%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 115.50p -1.32%