London open: Stocks edge higher as housebuilders rally
London stocks edged higher in early trade on Tuesday, with housebuilders pacing the gains.
At 0900 BST, the FTSE 100 was up 0.4% at 6,127.47.
Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell said: "With gold retreating slightly from Monday’s record-breaking performance - the safe haven commodity neared, but didn’t quite reach, the mythic $2,000 per ounce mark - there wasn’t much drama to digest after the bell.
"The FTSE added 0.4%, allowing the UK index to put of distance between it and 6100. The FTSE 250 was slightly stronger, climbing 0.6% in part thanks to a 3% rebound from TUI.
"Looking ahead and, on what is Day 1 of the Federal Reserve’s July meeting - the fruits of which won’t be revealed until Wednesday evening - the Dow Jones is currently heading for a fairly flat start this afternoon. Like its European peers, the Dow is waiting for a renewed sense of direction."
In equity markets, housebuilders rallied, with Barratt, Berkeley, Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey all higher on the back of a report that UK ministers are drawing up plans to extend the Help to Buy scheme beyond its December deadline to prevent buyers losing out because of coronavirus delays. According to The Times, the government is set to prolong the scheme, which allows people in England to buy a new-build property with only a small deposit.
Education publisher Pearson was the standout gainer on the FTSE 100, having fallen sharply in the previous session on downbeat broker notes.
Miniature wargames manufacturer Games Workshop racked up strong gains as it posted a rise in annual pre-tax profit and revenue, hailing an "amazing" set of results.
Greencore advanced after the Irish convenience food group posted a drop in third-quarter sales as its food to go categories were hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, but said trends were improving and announced the sale of its molasses businesses.
TalkTalk was higher following a Sky News report that it rejected a takeover bid last year from asset manager Toscafund that would have valued it at close to double its current share price.
On the downside, precious metals miner Fresnillo fell even as it said higher commodity prices and lower costs had resulted in a "significant" rise in profitability during the first half.
Consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser also lost ground even as it reported a 10.8% jump in first-half net revenue as its hygiene business was boosted by solid demand for cleaning products due to the pandemic.
Bakery chain Greggs was also in the red after swinging to a loss in the first half as sales fell after its shops were forced to close for three months due to the pandemic.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 6,127.47 0.37%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 17,268.96 0.65%
techMARK (TASX) 3,764.89 0.48%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Pearson (PSON) 528.60p 3.20%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 532.60p 3.06%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 4,603.00p 2.95%
BT Group (BT.A) 111.20p 2.92%
Persimmon (PSN) 2,514.00p 2.11%
Smurfit Kappa Group (SKG) 2,546.00p 2.09%
Just Eat Takeaway.Com N.V. (CDI) (JET) 8,460.00p 1.81%
NATWEST GROUP PLC ORD 100P (NWG) 113.95p 1.70%
Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 1,203.20p 1.59%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 132.05p 1.58%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Fresnillo (FRES) 1,235.50p -3.21%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 254.30p -2.19%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 7,600.00p -1.55%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 184.15p -1.50%
Polymetal International (POLY) 1,905.00p -1.42%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,263.00p -1.17%
HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 349.00p -1.16%
Spirax-Sarco Engineering (SPX) 10,600.00p -0.89%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 188.10p -0.71%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,669.00p -0.66%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Games Workshop Group (GAW) 8,935.00p 5.68%
Greencore Group (GNC) 117.10p 4.93%
Avon Rubber (AVON) 3,475.00p 4.67%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 288.00p 4.54%
Kainos Group (KNOS) 1,080.00p 4.25%
TalkTalk Telecom Group (TALK) 77.35p 3.41%
Impax Environmental Markets (IEM) 354.00p 3.36%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 49.30p 3.27%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 456.10p 3.03%
Dixons Carphone (DC.) 77.70p 2.91%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Scottish Inv Trust (SCIN) 729.00p -3.44%
PureTech Health (PRTC) 266.00p -2.74%
Vivo Energy (VVO) 73.00p -2.54%
Vesuvius (VSVS) 383.00p -2.15%
Contour Global (GLO) 203.00p -1.93%
Syncona Limited NPV (SYNC) 248.00p -1.59%
Apax Global Alpha Limited (APAX) 157.80p -1.38%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 277.80p -1.28%
easyJet (EZJ) 535.40p -1.25%
TI Fluid Systems (TIFS) 174.20p -1.25%