London close: Stocks mixed after relatively quiet trading

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were mixed at the close on Monday, having started weaker after Chinese officials poured cold water on hopes the country would soon relax its Covid restrictions. The FTSE 100 ended the session down 0.48% at 7,299.99, while the FTSE 250 was ahead 1.19% at 18,559.57.

Sterling was in positive territory, and was 0.77% stronger against the dollar at $1.1467, while it gained 0.4% on the euro to trade at €1.1467.

"The latest US jobs report and a denial of any easing of China's zero Covid measures have failed to dent market optimism it seems - a sign perhaps that the buyers have control for the time being," said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.

"After the earnings and central bank decisions of recent weeks, calm has descended across markets, which perhaps offers hope that a decent rebound is in the works.

"The one cloud on the horizon is US CPI, but if the market's bullish mood is this strong then any hint of weakness could lead to an acceleration in the rally's momentum."

In economic news, house prices fell in the UK in October at the fastest monthly rate since February last year, amid rising mortgage rates and a downbeat outlook.

According to data from mortgage lender Halifax, prices declined by 0.4% on the month following a 0.1% dip in September.

On the year, house prices were down 8.3% in October following a 9.8% fall a month earlier.

A typical UK property now costs £292,598 - a five-month low - down from £293,664 in September.

"While a post-pandemic slowdown was expected, there's no doubt the housing market received a significant shock as a result of the mini-budget which saw a sudden acceleration in mortgage rate increases," said Kim Kinnaird, director of Halifax mortgages.

"While it is likely that those rates have peaked for now - following the reversal of previously announced fiscal measures - it appears that recent events have encouraged those with existing mortgages to look at their options, and some would-be homebuyers to take a pause.

"Understandably we have also seen consumer caution grow, as industry data shows mortgage approvals and demand for borrowing declining."

Elsewhere, retail footfall fell in the week ended 5 November as schools returned from the half-term break.

According to Springboard, UK footfall fell 7.5% last week, following a rise of 8.2% in the week prior, as footfall dropped 10.1% on high streets, 7.7% in shopping centres, and 1.8% in retail parks.

Footfall declined 3.8% in Scotland and 12.5% in the south west of England, with Wales and Northern Ireland being the only places to see footfall increase - up 0.4% and 7.2%, respectively.

While the 2019 footfall gap widened to -9.8% from -9% in the week before, the 2021 uplift increased from 3.2% to 5.2%.

"With schools returning after the half-term holiday, footfall in UK retail destinations dipped noticeably last week on the back of a strong comparable in the week before last," said Springboard's Diane Wehrle.

"Inevitably, the types of towns that recorded the greatest increases in footfall in the week before last - coastal and historic towns and central London - all recorded the greatest drops last week.

"At a broader geographic level, footfall declined in all but two areas of the UK, with double-digit drops in the south east and the south west."

On the continent, investor sentiment strengthened in the eurozone according to a closely-watched survey, as the mild autumn raised hopes for a better-than-feared winter.

The latest Sentix economic index came in at -30.9, a notable improvement on October's -38.3 and above expectations; most analysts had forecast a print closer to -35.0.

It was the first increase in three months.

Within that, the current situation and expectations indices both strengthened.

The current situation gauge rose to -29.5 from -35.5, while the expectations index jumped to -32.3 from -41.0, the highest reading since June.

German industrial production unexpectedly rose in September according to official statistics from Destatis, meanwhile, beating market forecasts with a 0.6% month-on-month increase.

September's rise followed a downwardly revised 1.2% contraction in August and tripled market expectations for a 0.2% uptick.

On an annual basis, Germany's industrial production was up 2.6% in September.

Production of consumer and capital goods improved 1.4% and 1.1%, respectively, while the output of intermediate goods, on the other hand, decreased 0.1% from a month earlier.

Finally on data, China's exports showed a surprise contraction last month, official data showed earlier, as Covid-19 restrictions and softening global demand weighed heavily.

Exports fell 0.3% year-on-year in October, down sharply on September's growth of 5.7% and the worst performance since in May 2020.

Analysts had been looking for growth of around 4.5%.

Imports shrank 0.7% compared to September's 0.3% increase, while consensus there had been for growth of around 0.1%.

The trade balance was $85.2bn compared to $84.7bn in September, below consensus for $96bn.

On London's equity markets, GSK slumped 4.72% after saying that its blood cancer drug, Blenrep, failed to meet the main goal of a late-stage study.

Asia-focused plays Prudential and HSBC were both in the red by a respective 0.77% and 2.16%, after officials in Beijing played down hopes of a China reopening over the weekend.

On the upside, IWG soared 26.83% after a Sky News report that CVC Capital Partners had made a £1.5bn approach for its Instant Group arm.

Online grocer and warehouse tech developer Ocado Group rose 6.34%, having surged last week after it announced a deal with South Korea's Lotte Shopping.

Mike Ashley's Frasers Group rallied 5.77% after it launched a share buyback programme of up to £70m, and following a report it was among bidders for the floundering Made.com Group.

Paddy Power owner Flutter Entertainment advanced 2.65% after a New York arbitrator sided with the company in its spat with Fox over FanDuel.

Bookmaking and gambling peer Entain was also on the front foot, rising 2.3% by the close.

Budget airlines easyJet and Wizz Air both ascended, by 2.87% and 8.18% respectively, after Irish rival Ryanair posted record interim profits and lifted its annual guidance.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com. Additional reporting by Michele Maatouk, Frank Prenesti, Iain Gilbert and Abigail Townsend.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,299.99 -0.48% FTSE 250 (MCX) 18,559.57 1.19% techMARK (TASX) 4,285.75 0.06%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Ocado Group (OCDO) 674.20p 6.34% Frasers Group (FRAS) 706.00p 5.77% Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 218.00p 4.46% Flutter Entertainment (CDI) (FLTR) 11,815.00p 2.65% Fresnillo (FRES) 775.20p 2.57% Next (NXT) 5,258.00p 2.54% Smurfit Kappa Group (CDI) (SKG) 3,014.00p 2.45% Entain (ENT) 1,313.50p 2.30% Smith (DS) (SMDS) 300.50p 2.25% International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 127.78p 2.24%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

GSK (GSK) 1,377.40p -4.72% Centrica (CNA) 76.62p -4.13% Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 743.40p -3.05% Convatec Group (CTEC) 210.20p -2.78% HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 479.40p -2.16% InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 4,702.00p -1.82% Admiral Group (ADM) 1,984.50p -1.76% Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 42.02p -1.72% Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 5,640.00p -1.71% Whitbread (WTB) 2,537.00p -1.51%

FTSE 250 - Risers

IWG (IWG) 169.95p 26.83% Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 133.90p 19.61% Molten Ventures (GROW) 392.40p 8.94% Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,984.00p 8.18% International Distributions Services (IDS) 216.30p 7.13% Genuit Group (GEN) 280.00p 6.87% Hammerson (HMSO) 21.48p 5.40% IP Group (IPO) 70.95p 5.27% Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) 110.40p 4.84% RHI Magnesita N.V. (DI) (RHIM) 2,076.00p 4.43%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Trainline (TRN) 305.50p -5.42% Carnival (CCL) 676.60p -3.65% Moneysupermarket.com Group (MONY) 178.70p -2.56% VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd. (VOF) 404.00p -2.53% QinetiQ Group (QQ.) 357.80p -1.87% Apax Global Alpha Limited (APAX) 165.60p -1.78% Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 199.00p -1.49% Drax Group (DRX) 532.50p -1.39% Ibstock (IBST) 156.80p -1.26% Paragon Banking Group (PAG) 431.60p -1.19%