FTSE 100 movers: Weir rallies on results; housebuilders slump
London’s FTSE 100 was up 0.9% at 7,945.87 in afternoon trade on Wednesday.
Miners were among the top performers after encouraging Chinese manufacturing data, with Rio, Glencore, Anglo American and Antofagasta all up.
Weir was the standout gainer, however, after the engineering group posted a rise in annual profits on the back of a booming mining industry.
Dettol and Nurofen maker Reckitt Benckiser also gained after saying it swung to a full-year profit as it benefited from higher prices.
On the downside, housebuilders slid after a profit warning from Persimmon, which said it had been hit by a spike in mortgage costs. The company said completions would likely be down "markedly" in the current year, which would hit both margin and profits.
Taylor Wimpey and Barratt also fell.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "Welcome to a new era of chaos for the housebuilders. Falling property prices and rising costs means profits are being squeezed and that will cause earnings in the sector to slump.
"Persimmon has already refined its dividend policy in preparation for a housing market downturn and now it provides a crystal-clear message that margins are set to fall which will lead to a decline in profits.
"The company is preparing for the worst and accepts that 2023 will go down in history as a bad year."
The sector was also hit by a Nationwide survey showing that house prices fell by 1.1% year-on-year in February, the first annual decline since June 2020.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Weir Group (WEIR) 2,030.00p 6.90%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 5,951.00p 4.18%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,979.50p 3.29%
Glencore (GLEN) 511.60p 3.28%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 5,944.00p 3.16%
Smurfit Kappa Group (CDI) (SKG) 3,190.00p 3.14%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,612.50p 2.71%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 153.80p 2.64%
Mondi (MNDI) 1,432.50p 2.58%
M&G (MNG) 219.60p 2.47%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Persimmon (PSN) 1,315.50p -9.43%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 118.45p -3.86%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 451.80p -3.69%
Unite Group (UTG) 953.00p -3.05%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,676.00p -2.73%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 992.20p -2.53%
National Grid (NG.) 1,021.50p -2.53%
Admiral Group (ADM) 2,151.00p -2.27%
SSE (SSE) 1,712.00p -1.92%
SEGRO (SGRO) 809.20p -1.72%