London midday: Stocks turn higher as Rolls-Royce, IAG rally
London stocks had turned higher by midday on Tuesday, helped along by a strong showing from the likes of IAG and Rolls-Royce, although ongoing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic and the looming US stimulus deadline meant gains were unspectacular.
The FTSE 100 was up 0.3% at 5,901.12.
Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell said: "It feels like we are entering a potentially choppy period for the markets. The US presidential election is about to become more of a pronounced presence, especially since a lack of pre-vote stimulus package - Nancy Pelosi’s 48-hour deadline ends tonight - means the outcome will dictate what kind of relief Americans receive.
"And at the same time the Covid-19 crisis is intensifying - and remember, we aren’t in the acute months of winter yet either - with the ominous shuttering sounds of more restrictions in Europe joined by rising positivity rates in several prominent US states.”
In equity markets, British Airways and Iberia parent IAG flew higher as Heathrow airport launched a one-hour Covid-19 test. Engine maker Rolls-Royce and GKN owner Melrose also pushed higher, along with InterContinental Hotels and Premier Inn owner Whitbread.
Retailer Next was boosted by an initiation at ‘overweight’ by Barclays.
Consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser rallied after lifting its full-year like-for-like net revenue guidance and posting a jump in third-quarter sales as the Covid-19 pandemic underpinned demand for its disinfection brands.
Group sales on a like-for-like basis rose 13.3% in the third quarter to £3.5bn and 12.4% in the year to date to £10.4bn.
On the downside, housebuilder Bellway retreated after it slashed its dividend as annual profits fell by 66% due to the coronavirus shutdown, but said reservations had risen by a third at the start of the new financial year.
Britvic fizzed higher as it said adjusted profit for 2020 is expected to be slightly ahead of current market consensus after better-than-expected trading over the summer, as it announced a new and exclusive bottling agreement with PepsiCo.
Other housebuilders followed suit, with Berkeley, Taylor Wimpey and Barratt all lower.
IT infrastructure and services provider Softcat slumped after the release of its full-year results, while Trainline was weaker after it said Clare Gilmartin will be stepping down as chief executive officer at the end of February 2021.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 5,901.12 0.28%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 17,938.11 0.40%
techMARK (TASX) 3,826.11 0.48%
FTSE 100 - Risers
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 105.85p 5.85%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 228.40p 3.82%
Informa (INF) 432.30p 3.52%
Next (NXT) 6,354.00p 3.05%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 133.40p 2.93%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 4,294.00p 2.73%
Whitbread (WTB) 2,306.00p 2.26%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,967.50p 2.21%
SEGRO (SGRO) 932.20p 1.97%
Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,407.50p 1.96%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 4,190.00p -1.74%
M&G (MNG) 164.00p -1.68%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 115.40p -1.62%
Polymetal International (POLY) 1,753.50p -1.49%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 529.80p -1.38%
Just Eat Takeaway.Com N.V. (CDI) (JET) 9,804.00p -1.15%
Bunzl (BNZL) 2,521.00p -0.90%
Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 931.40p -0.85%
Fresnillo (FRES) 1,321.00p -0.83%
Avast (AVST) 518.50p -0.77%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Cineworld Group (CINE) 28.26p 9.75%
Britvic (BVIC) 798.50p 6.40%
Vesuvius (VSVS) 422.60p 5.39%
AO World (AO.) 315.50p 5.17%
Signature Aviation (SIG) 256.20p 4.70%
IWG (IWG) 286.20p 4.22%
easyJet (EZJ) 513.80p 4.13%
WH Smith (SMWH) 985.00p 4.12%
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 302.00p 3.50%
SSP Group (SSPG) 186.40p 3.33%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Trainline (TRN) 290.80p -12.67%
Softcat (SCT) 1,154.00p -7.01%
Gamesys Group (GYS) 1,270.00p -3.20%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 243.40p -2.95%
Bellway (BWY) 2,550.00p -2.89%
TP ICAP (TCAP) 205.80p -2.83%
SDL (SDL) 706.00p -2.75%
PureTech Health (PRTC) 243.50p -2.60%
Sanne Group (SNN) 624.00p -2.19%
AJ Bell (AJB) 413.50p -2.01%