Equities Up, Supported by Data from China and US

A lack of disappointing economic data on Tuesday helped attract investors back to equities and to the perceived riskier sectors

Holly Cook 14 June, 2011 | 6:58PM
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn

Locally-listed equities picked up momentum on Tuesday as economic data lifted investor sentiment, with heavyweight energy and financial stocks supporting the FTSE 100.

The UK benchmark index closed up 30 points or 0.5% at 5,803 and the FTSE 250 index took on 82 points or 09.7% to 11,861.

A string of key Chinese economic data offered no negative surprises this morning and set the tone for the rest of the trading day in Europe. Later in the session, a less-severe-than-expected drop in US retail sales of 0.2% in May helped buoy sentiment, as did an indication that inflation across the pond may be easing after growth in wholesale prices slowed down in May.

On the London Stock Exchange, upbeat broker comment helped a handful of individual stocks, with ITV (ITV) enjoying a 4.4% rise, Schroder (SDR) climbing 3.9% and Weir (WEIR) adding 1.2%.

Financials and natural resources plays also offered support as investors dared to return to riskier assets, with Kazakhmys (KAZ) and Antofagasta (ANTO) up 3.5%-3.8% while Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) took on 1.9%-2.4%.

But not all miners were in fine fettle. Glencore (GLEN), which has proved it’s not shy of the headlines since it listed last month, was the FTSE 100’s main casualty, down 4.5% after the commodities trader reported its first trading update as a listed company and denied market talk that it’s preparing a bid for Kazakh miner Eurasian Natural Resources (ENRC).

In other news, Nokia (NOK1V) said today that it had reached an agreement with Apple (AAPL) to end an ongoing patent dispute. Apple will pay Nokia a one-time fee and ongoing royalties for the right to use some of the mobile firm's intellectual property. Nokia shares climbed 3.3% on the news in Helsinki while Apple shares were up 1.3% at last check.

The information contained within is for educational and informational purposes ONLY. It is not intended nor should it be considered an invitation or inducement to buy or sell a security or securities noted within nor should it be viewed as a communication intended to persuade or incite you to buy or sell security or securities noted within. Any commentary provided is the opinion of the author and should not be considered a personalised recommendation. The information contained within should not be a person's sole basis for making an investment decision. Please contact your financial professional before making an investment decision.

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn

About Author

Holly Cook

Holly Cook  is Manager, Morningstar EMEA Websites

© Copyright 2024 Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved.

Terms of Use        Privacy Policy        Modern Slavery Statement        Cookie Settings        Disclosures