Investment accounts
Adult accounts
Child accounts
Choosing Fidelity
Choosing Fidelity
Why invest with us Current offers Fees and charges Open an account Transfer investments
Financial advice & support
Fidelity’s Services
Fidelity’s Services
Financial advice Retirement Wealth Management Investor Centre (London) Bereavement
Guidance and tools
Guidance and tools
Choosing investments Choosing accounts ISA calculator Retirement calculators
Share dealing
Choose your shares
Tools and information
Tools and information
Share prices and markets Chart and compare shares Stock market news Shareholder perks IPOs and placings
Pensions & retirement
Pensions, tax & tools
Saving for retirement
Approaching / In retirement
Approaching / In retirement
Speak to a specialist Creating a retirement plan Taking tax-free cash Pension drawdown Annuities Investing in retirement Investment Pathways
London close: Stocks end mixed ahead of key speech from Fed's Powell
(Sharecast News) - London stocks ended Tuesday on a mixed note, although BP shares surged following the release of its latest set of results, even as investors eyed a speech by US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell scheduled for after the close. The FTSE 100 was 0.36% firmer at 7,864.71, but the second-tier index gave back 1.08% to 20,189.0.
In parallel, the pound was drifting lower by 0.07% to 1.2010 and the yield on the benchmark 10-year Gilt was up by seven basis points to 3.317%.
Powell was due to speak at the Economic Club of Washington from 1800 GMT.
"Market sentiment remains on the rocks after a week of volatility that saw a bumper payrolls figure hammer home earlier warnings of additional monetary tightening at the Fed," said IG senior market analyst Josh Mahony.
"[...] Fears of additional rate hikes bring upside for the dollar, although the subsequent GBPUSD decline helps alleviate FTSE 100 declines thanks to the impact on earnings valuations for internationally-focused firms. For that reason, the FTSE 100 outperformance today highlights how the index should be propped up if market declines are accompanied by dollar strength."
On home shores, investors digested industry data showing that UK retail sales growth slowed last month as the festive boost faded.
According to the latest BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor, total sales rose 4.2% year-on-year in January, or by 3.9% on a like-for-like basis.
It was a marked slowdown on January 2022, when retail sales strengthened 11.9% on both a total and like-for-like sales basis. It was also down on December, when total sales rose 6.9% and underlying sales by 6.5%.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, said: "As Christmas cheer subsided, retailers felt the January blues as sales growth slowed.
"Many retailers discounted heavily to entice consumer spend, and while there were bargains to be had in the January sales, retailers continue to be hit by lower margins and falling volumes.
"The coming months will continue to be challenging for retailers and their customers. Consumer confidence remains stubbornly low and looming rises in household bills and mortgages mean discretionary spending will remain weak."
Market participants were also mulling over the latest survey from mortgage lender Halifax, which showed that house prices stabilised in January following four months of falls.
Prices were broadly flat on the month at £281,684, following a 1.3% decline in December and a 2.4% drop in November. On the year, price growth slowed to 1.9% from 2.1% in December and 4.6% in November.
The average house price was now around £12,500, or 4.2%, below its peak in August last year, but around £5,000 higher than in January 2022.
In equity markets, BP surged to the top of the FTSE 100 after saying it more than doubled annual profits to a record $27.6bn as it cashed in on soaring gas prices. This fuelled more calls for the government to change windfall tax arrangements on energy companies as consumers face a 40% rise in household bills in April.
The full-year result compares with $12.8bn a year earlier. In the final three months of 2022 underlying replacement cost profit - its preferred measure - came in at $4.80bn, missing estimates of $5.04bn and well below $8.15bn in the third quarter.
BP's results follow those from rival Shell, which last week posted record yearly profits of almost $40bn as gas prices took off as Russia invaded Ukraine. Shell also rallied.
Auction Technology gained 10% after it announced the acquisition of US estate sales listing site Vintage Software for $40m.
On the downside, Morgan Advanced Materials slumped as it warned that disruption from a previously-disclosed cyber incident meant that FY2023 adjusted operating profit was likely to be 10-15% lower than expected.
Ferrexpo plummeted after the iron ore pellet maker said Ukrainian courts have granted an order to freeze bank accounts belonging to one of its subsidiaries in the war-torn country over alleged royalty underpayments.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,864.71 0.36% FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,189.00 -1.08% techMARK (TASX) 4,515.47 -0.22%
FTSE 100 - Risers
BP (BP.) 516.40p 7.95% Airtel Africa (AAF) 121.10p 3.15% BT Group (BT.A) 133.75p 2.61% Shell (SHEL) 2,455.00p 2.36% GSK (GSK) 1,485.60p 1.68% Standard Chartered (STAN) 682.60p 1.67% Beazley (BEZ) 667.50p 1.60% HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 605.00p 1.51% NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 304.00p 1.27% Barclays (BARC) 188.84p 1.23%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Pearson (PSON) 902.00p -2.78% Melrose Industries (MRO) 144.40p -2.56% Compass Group (CPG) 1,883.00p -2.31% Rentokil Initial (RTO) 494.10p -2.12% Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 768.40p -2.06% Flutter Entertainment (CDI) (FLTR) 12,700.00p -2.01% Smurfit Kappa Group (CDI) (SKG) 3,488.00p -1.91% Rightmove (RMV) 589.80p -1.90% Sage Group (SGE) 780.40p -1.79% Experian (EXPN) 3,019.00p -1.76%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Auction Technology Group (ATG) 748.00p 9.52% Darktrace (DARK) 243.70p 5.04% Balanced Commercial Property Trust Limited (BCPT) 82.80p 2.48% Energean (ENOG) 1,204.00p 2.12% International Distributions Services (IDS) 238.60p 1.66% ITV (ITV) 86.64p 1.62% Redrow (RDW) 540.50p 1.60% Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 3,178.00p 1.34% Bank of Georgia Group (BGEO) 2,735.00p 1.30% Tullow Oil (TLW) 34.34p 1.12%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 137.50p -9.84% Mitie Group (MTO) 78.10p -6.35% Currys (CURY) 72.25p -5.80% Future (FUTR) 1,603.00p -5.20% Morgan Advanced Materials (MGAM) 300.50p -4.91% Supermarket Income Reit (SUPR) 96.80p -4.63% IWG (IWG) 183.65p -4.45% Molten Ventures (GROW) 365.40p -4.35% Helios Towers (HTWS) 105.50p -4.00% Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) (BPT) 239.60p -3.93%
Share this article
Related Sharecast Articles
Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.
Award-winning online share dealing
Search, compare and select from thousands of shares.
Expert insights into investing your money
Our team of experts explore the world of share dealing.
Policies and important information
Accessibility | Conflicts of interest statement | Consumer Duty Target Market | Consumer Duty Value Assessment Statement | Cookie policy | Diversity and Inclusion | Doing Business with Fidelity | Fidelity gender pay report | Investing in Fidelity funds | Legal information | Modern slavery | Mutual respect policy | Privacy statement | Remuneration policy | Security | Statutory and Regulatory disclosures | Whistleblowing policy
Please remember that past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance, the performance of investments is not guaranteed, and the value of your investments can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest. When investments have particular tax features, these will depend on your personal circumstances and tax rules may change in the future. This website does not contain any personal recommendations for a particular course of action, service or product. You should regularly review your investment objectives and choices and, if you are unsure whether an investment is suitable for you, you should contact an authorised financial adviser. Before opening an account, please read the ‘Doing Business with Fidelity’ document which incorporates our client terms. Prior to investing into a fund, please read the relevant key information document which contains important information about the fund.
This website is issued by Financial Administration Services Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) (FCA Register number 122169) and registered in England and Wales under company number 1629709 whose registered address is Beech Gate, Millfield Lane, Lower Kingswood, Tadworth, Surrey, KT20 6RP.