London close: FTSE ends with modest gains after Scottish vote, Salmond quits
London-listed stocks ended the final session of the week with decent gains, although the final figure was notably lower than the level seen earlier in the day following the Scottish referendum result.
Acacia Mining
234.00p
16:45 16/09/19
Ferguson
17,100.00p
16:49 26/04/24
FTSE 100
8,139.83
17:09 26/04/24
KAZ Minerals
849.00p
16:40 10/05/21
NATWEST GROUP
307.40p
16:40 26/04/24
Some 55.3% of Scots voted 'no' to independence from the UK while 44.7% voted 'yes', erasing concerns about a break-up which has weighed heavily on market sentiment in recent weeks.
The result prompted Alex Salmond to quit as Scotland's First Minister and the leader of the SNP party.
After a sharp rise at the opening bell and fairly steady trading throughout the day, the FTSE untimately closed 18.63 points higher at 6,837.92.
"European bourses have [...] managed to keep in positive territory despite falling off the highs seen with the ‘relief rally’ caused by the no vote winning in the Scottish Referendum," said Spreadex's Samuel Fox.
He also noted that the pound has "managed to slowly strengthen over the past few days as the market priced in the increased possibility of a no vote".
Capital Economics pointed out that "although interest rate expectations and sterling both edged up following the result, their main movement over the last month has been down, reflecting signs that low inflation may delay the first interest rate hike".
Away from the referendum, a report showed German producer prices fell 0.8% year-on-year in August, as expected.
Across the Pond, a report showed that a gauge of the US outlook for the next three to six months rose at a slower pace in August. The Conference Board’s index of leading indicators is increased 0.2%, following a 0.9% gain in July, missing expectations for a 0.4% rise.
In corporate news, Alibaba started trading at $92.70 per share following its initial public offering.
Scottish result pushes RBS higher
Royal Bank of Scotland made strong gains following the announcement of the referendum on Scottish independence. SSE, Standard Life and Lloyds were all higher for the same reason.
SABMiller was higher after Nomura upgraded the brewing group from 'reduce' to 'neutral' and raised its target for the shares from 2,850p to 3,600p.
Mining stocks didn't join in with the post-Scottish referendum euphoria, with share prices in the sector down an average 0.6% in afternoon trade.
A broad sell-off of commodity prices was weighing on stocks during the session, with gold in particular trading near an eight-month low as the dollar advanced on Federal Reserve interest-rate speculation. Gold was down for a third straight week and futures for December delivery hit a low of $1,216.30 on Thursday, its lowest since 6 January.
Wolseley was in negative territory after Jefferies International retained its 'underperform' rating on the stock and cut its target price from 2,760p to 2,630p.
Market Movers
techMARK 2,871.42 +0.74%
FTSE 100 6,837.92 +0.27%
FTSE 250 15,859.10 +0.87%
FTSE 100 - Risers
3i Group (III) 398.90p +3.29%
St James's Place (STJ) 721.00p +3.00%
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 366.00p +2.46%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,091.00p +2.44%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,059.00p +2.32%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 435.30p +2.23%
Meggitt (MGGT) 489.70p +2.02%
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 182.00p +2.02%
IMI (IMI) 1,322.00p +1.93%
Admiral Group (ADM) 1,234.00p +1.90%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,355.00p -1.69%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,179.00p -1.56%
Wolseley (WOS) 3,315.00p -1.40%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,793.50p -1.27%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 398.70p -1.26%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,472.00p -1.17%
Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 430.70p -1.10%
Prudential (PRU) 1,413.00p -1.02%
Persimmon (PSN) 1,366.00p -1.01%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 3,104.00p -0.89%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Domino Printing Sciences (DNO) 606.00p +9.29%
Infinis Energy (INFI) 236.00p +8.81%
Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 431.70p +4.81%
Laird (LRD) 309.60p +4.67%
Ladbrokes (LAD) 134.40p +4.51%
Synthomer (SYNT) 237.70p +4.25%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 1,090.00p +4.21%
IG Group Holdings (IGG) 618.00p +3.69%
Tullett Prebon (TLPR) 290.90p +3.67%
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust (ASL) 1,079.00p +3.65%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (MLC) 554.00p -4.97%
Rathbone Brothers (RAT) 1,850.00p -4.39%
Soco International (SIA) 416.10p -3.07%
Kazakhmys (KAZ) 265.50p -3.03%
JPMorgan Emerging Markets Inv Trust (JMG) 567.50p -2.66%
ITE Group (ITE) 195.00p -2.16%
African Barrick Gold (ABG) 218.20p -2.15%
Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 95.70p -2.15%
Electra Private Equity (ELTA) 2,661.00p -2.10%
Croda International (CRDA) 2,164.00p -2.08%