FTSE 100 Live 14 August: Inflation rises in July; index rallies
FTSE 100 Live 14 August: Inflation rises in July; index rallies ·Evening Standard
Simon Hunt and Michael Hunter
6 min read
Entain tops FTSE leaderboard as investors back the bookies following Flutter profit boost
09:46 , Michael Hunter
Entain, the gambling group, was the main winner in morning trade today, topping the FTSE 100 leaderboard after upbeat results elsewhere in the sector energised its shares.
Traders backed bookmaker following forecast-beating results from Flutter, the owner of the Betfair and Paddy Power brands, which shifted its main stock listing to New York in May.
A strong showing during the Euros football tournament meant Flutter’s revenue rose by a fifth to $3.6 billion at Flutter.
Entain had already lifted its guidance last week – also after doing well during the summer football internationals – but Flutter’s update drew in more bets that the rally in the sector has further to run.
Its stock rose 16p to 597p, taking it up over 3%
Tui shares lift on guidance upgrade
09:22 , Simon Hunt
Package holiday giant Tui today lifted its full-year earnings guidance after it saw strong summer bookings.
The Hanover-based business posted a near-10% increase in revenue to €5.8 billion (£5 billion) for the three months to the end of June, driven by a 5.5% increase in passenger numbers from 5.5 million to 5.8 million.
Tui expects revenue for its full-year to 30 September 2024 to increase by at least 10% year-on-year and underlying ebit to go up by at least a quarter year-on-year.
Chief executive Sebastian Ebel said Tui was “growing profitably and are delivering what we have announced," but warned of “"a market environment that remains challenging".
Tui shares rose 4% to 5.76 euros. The firm delisted from the London Stock Exchange at the end of June in favour of a primary listing on the Frankfurt stock market in search of higher valuations. The company’s shares have fallen by 20% since the start of the year.
"We believe this set of results should be good enough for the shares today," Jefferies analysts said.
(Gareth Fuller/PA Wire)
FTSE 100 opens higher after rise in inflation is not as steep as City had feared
08:29
London’s FTSE 100 is on course for its fourth consecutive session of gains today, after the first rise in the annual rate of inflation of the year did not cloud the outlook for two Bank of England interest rate cuts this year.
The main UK stock index added almost 50 points in opening trade. That took it to 8282.38, up 0.6%. With the market also pricing in two more quarter-point rate cuts from the Bank of England this year – which would take the base cost of borrowing to 4.75% – shares in companies in line to benefit rose.
Rightmove, the online property portal well placed to benefit from a livelier housing market, was up 8p to 545p. Persimmon, the house builder rose 20p to 1630p. Barclays, a major mortgage lender, rose 3p to 222p.
The headline measure of the cost of living, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), was 2.2% higher in July, compared with a rise of just 2% in June, had been expected to go up to 2.3% so most City analysts believe the the smaller than predicted rise is unlikely to delay another interest rate cut.
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Higher premiums help FTSE 100 insurer Aviva beat profit forecasts
07:36 , Michael Hunter
Higher premiums have helped FTSE 100 insurer Aviva post better-than-expected profit for the half year.
Operating profit came in at £875 million, up 14% and above than the £830 million forecast. It also upped its interim dividend by 7% to 11.9p per share.
It said that premiums in its General Insurance business were up 15% to just over £6 billion.
Sales of retirement products were lower, at £3.036 billion, down from £3.223 billion. The drop came due to a “contraction of the Equity Release market” and a £100 million fall in sales of “bulk purchase annuities”, the deals made when companies offload their pension schemes, which hit £2.3 billion in the period.
Amanda Blanc, Group chief executive officer, said:
“We remain very positive about Aviva’s prospects. Trading conditions across the UK, Ireland and Canada, are excellent. And the UK market, our largest, is highly attractive and growing.”
Annual rate of inflation rose from 2% to 2.2% in July
07:23 , Jonathan Prynn
The annual rate of inflation rose for the first time this year last month, although not as much as some City forecasters feared.
The headline measure of the cost of living, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), was 2.2% higher in July, compared with a rise of just 2% in June, according to official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
However, inflation had been expected to go up to 2.3% so the smaller than predicted rise is unlikely to delay another interest rate cut. The rate of inflation last rose in December 2023 when the CPI went up from 3.9% to 4%.
The ONS said the main reason for the tick up in the inflation rate was that gas and electricity prices did not fall as steeply as they had in same month last year.
Darren Jones, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, said: “The new Government is under no illusion as to the scale of the challenge we have inherited, with many families still struggling with the cost of living. That is why we are taking the tough decisions now to fix the foundations of our economy so we can rebuild Britain and make every part of the country better off.”
FTSE 100 on course for further gains as brighter mood holds after inflation rise
07:16 , Michael Hunter
London’s main stock market index is on course for further gains in opening trade, in a move that would set it on course for its fourth consecutive day of gains.
The positive mood held after inflation data for July showed a rise for the first time in over six months.
July’s consumer price index rose to 2.2% for the month, up from the 2% seen in June, which was the second reading in a row bang in line with the Bank of England’s official target.
After the numbers were out, futures trade stayed positive, pointing to a rise of around 35 points.
Recap: Yesterday's top stories
06:52 , Simon Hunt
Good morning from the Standard City desk.
Here’s a summary of our top headlines from yesterday:
Wage growth cools to a two year low of 5.4% raising hopes of further interest rate cuts as unemployment rises
Sainsbury’s and Tesco power on market share over the summer as Aldi falters, reveals latest Kantar data, which also shows surging ice cream/ burger and beer sales
