London midday: Stocks maintain gains as BAT rallies on update
London equity markets were still in the green by midday on Wednesday, with tobacco stocks on the up after a well-received update from British American Tobacco, and sentiment underpinned by optimism over a China-US trade deal.
The FTSE 100 was 0.3% higher at 7,428.57, while the pound was up 0.1% against the dollar at 1.2881 and 0.2% versus the euro at 1.1702.
Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at Markets.com, said all eyes will be on the multilevel regression and post-stratification (MRP) poll from YouGov, which is due to be released at 2200 GMT.
"Given most traders will be in bed or the pub it could result in some whippy price action in GBP pairs. This detailed survey aims to offer a prediction for every seat (ex-Northern Ireland) and it correctly predicted the hung parliament in 2017," he said.
"With the Tories apparently sitting pretty, this poll has the potential to change the narrative of the campaign if it shows a different outcome. Remember, a Tory majority tends to be near-term supportive of the pound as anything else is messy and uncertain."
The positive tone in markets followed on from fresh closing highs on Wall Street on Tuesday thanks to a strong performance from retailers and after US President Donald Trump said the US and China were in the "final throes of a very important deal" and that things were going "very well".
However, Trump also said that the US would "want to see it go well in Hong Kong".
CMC Markets analyst David Madden said: "The back and forth of the trade discussions has been at the forefront of traders’ minds recently. Equity markets are posting gains, but the upside moves aren’t massive as dealers are mindful that things still could fall apart. The breakdown in trade talks in June hasn’t been forgotten by traders."
In equity markets, British American Tobacco gained ground after saying it expects full-year adjusted operating profit and revenue growth to be in the upper half of its long-term guidance range, driven by strong results in the US. Imperial Brands was the biggest riser, however.
Grainger was on the front foot as the residential landlord posted a 30% jump in full-year pre-tax profit as net rental income grew.
Drinks maker Britvic reversed earlier losses to trade marginally higher after it reported a decline in full-year pre-tax profit following a "challenging" year in France.
On the downside, shares of aerospace and defence giant Rolls-Royce fell after it was downgraded to 'equalweight' by Morgan Stanley, while Johnson Matthey retreated as Liberum cut its earnings outlook and price target.
Publisher Future was under the cosh after a discounted share placing.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,428.57 0.34%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,927.51 0.30%
techMARK (TASX) 4,123.96 0.36%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,355.00p 2.65%
Sage Group (SGE) 770.40p 2.56%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 1,711.20p 2.50%
Pearson (PSON) 669.60p 2.07%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,037.50p 1.72%
British Land Company (BLND) 570.20p 1.64%
Evraz (EVR) 372.40p 1.58%
Spirax-Sarco Engineering (SPX) 9,070.00p 1.57%
Auto Trader Group (AUTO) 555.80p 1.35%
ITV (ITV) 143.05p 1.24%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Compass Group (CPG) 1,869.00p -2.43%
Fresnillo (FRES) 563.60p -2.19%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 770.40p -2.18%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,962.00p -1.76%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 730.00p -1.48%
Meggitt (MGGT) 651.20p -1.00%
3i Group (III) 1,069.00p -0.97%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 235.60p -0.97%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 7,507.00p -0.70%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 1,146.00p -0.61%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 563.20p 6.22%
UDG Healthcare Public Limited Company (UDG) 792.00p 5.60%
Sirius Real Estate Ltd. (SRE) 81.90p 3.67%
Investec (INVP) 446.30p 3.48%
Lancashire Holdings Limited (LRE) 751.50p 3.30%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 151.10p 3.07%
Royal Mail (RMG) 213.00p 2.80%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 75.65p 2.79%
Balfour Beatty (BBY) 228.60p 2.51%
Sanne Group (SNN) 630.00p 2.44%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Future (FUTR) 1,442.00p -8.27%
Convatec Group (CTEC) 190.60p -2.88%
PureTech Health (PRTC) 278.00p -2.46%
CLS Holdings (CLI) 267.50p -2.37%
Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 456.50p -2.25%
PPHE Hotel Group Ltd (PPH) 1,860.00p -2.11%
Pets at Home Group (PETS) 244.80p -1.69%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 1,602.00p -1.48%
Capital & Counties Properties (CAPC) 247.30p -1.47%
Capita (CPI) 159.05p -1.18%