Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
The FTSE 100 advanced as “bullish” on Thursday amid fears of a US rate cut. federal Despite some fresh AI concerns, reserves and an improving US economic outlook boosted stocks.
The FTSE 100 index rose 47.63 points, 0.5%, to close at 9,703.16. The FTSE 250 rose 21.13 points, 0.1%, to 21,852.10 and the AIM All-Share rose 1.04 points, 0.1%, to 747.66.
In Europe on Thursday, the CAC 40 in Paris closed up 0.8%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt closed up 0.7%.
After Europe closed on Wednesday, the US central bank cut interest rates by 25 basis points, as expected and the chairman jerome powell Strikes in a softer tone than some had feared.
Bank of America called it an “inadvertent cut,” Citi said the market had “overestimated how tough Mr. Powell would look,” while JP Morgan noted that Mr Powell’s initial comments were “less forceful than those used in October”.
“Compared with markets that were expecting Powell to push back more strongly on the possibility of further cuts, this was a disappointing result,” Citi said.
Goldman Sachs said “neutral labor market comments” and “the lack of a strong bias towards January’s stagnation slowed the market’s reaction”.
Additionally, the Federal Reserve raised expectations for economic growth in the US from 2026 to 2028, anticipating a rebound after the government shutdown.
Wells Fargo analyst Sarah House said: “Our base case is that the current easing cycle is not over yet, but rather it is entering a slowing phase.”
Stocks were mixed in New York at the close of London equities after rising sharply on Wednesday in the wake of the Fed’s rate call.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.0%, the S&P 500 index was 0.4% lower, while the Nasdaq Composite was down 1.1%.
Oracle The market mood turned more optimistic after hours on Wednesday with a warning of higher capital expenditure as it grapples with rising demand for artificial intelligence.
shares The Texas-based cloud technology-focused company was down 14% in New York on Thursday at the London close.
Stifel said shares were being impacted by “continued uncertainty about how Oracle will meet its data center build-out requirements”.
The Fed rate call saw bond yields fall and the dollar fall.
The yield on US 10-year Treasuries was reported at 4.12%, up from 4.18% on Wednesday. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was down from 4.78% to 4.77%.
At the time of closing of the London Stock Exchange on Thursday, the price of the pound was $ 1.3416, while on Wednesday it was $ 1.3332.
The euro stood at $1.1746 against $1.1647. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at 155.24 yen compared with 156.36 yen.
The data shows that the US trade deficit unexpectedly declined significantly in September.
The country’s trade deficit shrank 11% monthly to $52.8 billion in September from $59.3 billion in August, according to data published by the US Census Bureau and the US Bureau of Economic Analysis.
The consensus cited by FXStreet was for the trade deficit to widen to $63.3 billion in September.
The last time the US trade deficit was this low was in June 2020, when it stood at $49.16 billion.
US exports rose 3.0% to $289.3 billion, while imports rose 0.6% to $342.1 billion.
In London, Endeavor Mining rose 3.2% and Fresnillo rose 3.0% on new strength in the gold price.
Magnum Ice Cream continued its strong performance in its first week of trading and gained 5.6%, while its AI collaboration with IBM gave Pearson a 2.0% gain.
Grocer J Sainsbury’s was upgraded 2.1% by Citi to “buy”, but the same broker reiterated a “sell” rating on Primark owner Associated British Foods, helping push shares down 1.6%.
Also, betting operator Enten, which fell 2.2% after saying its chief financial officer and deputy chief executive Rob Wood would step down in 2026 after 13 years at the firm.
On the FTSE 250, RS Group gained 6.2% after getting an upgrade to “overweight” from JP Morgan.
But Ceres Power fell 11% after a sharp attack from activist short-seller Grizzly Research.
In a report, Grizzly Research said Ceres was “hiding a flawed business model with extremely low revenue potential behind big-name announcements and lofty projections”.
Grizzly said her research shows that Ceres has a history of “ambitious partnerships and unrealistic projections that keep getting repeated”.
Outperforming, Drax Group gained 1.4% after saying it expected full-year adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization to be at the top of the consensus forecast range of £892 million to £909 million.
In addition, the power generator said it was looking for opportunities to maximize value from the Drax power station site, which covers 1,000 acres in North Yorkshire.
At the time of closing of the London Stock Exchange on Thursday, the price of Brent oil was $ 60.91 per barrel, which was $ 61.42 late on Wednesday evening.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Magnum Ice Cream, up 63.20p at 1,186.20p, Ashtead Group, up 225.00p at 5,010.00p, JD Sports Fashion, up 2.80p at 81.72p, Endeavor Mining, up 110.00p at 3,544.00p and IAG, up 3,544.00p. At 12.00 hrs 397.60 hrs.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Informa, down 30.60p at 899.00p, Smith & Nephew, down 34.50p at 1,214.50p, Enten, down 16.60p at 743.20p, AB Foods, down 33.00p at 2,097.50p and Centrica, joined with the fall. 2.20p at 165.30p.
Friday’s economic calendar features CPI prints in France and Germany and UK GDP and industrial production data.
Friday’s UK corporate calendar features Taylor Maritime’s half-year results.
– Contributed by Alliance News