London open: Stocks gain on US cues; Prudential rallies

(Sharecast News) - London stocks rose in early trade on Wednesday, taking their cue from a solid session on Wall Street, with Prudential pacing the gains. At 0905 BST, the FTSE 100 was up 0.5% at 7,503.21.

US stocks has a strong finish on Tuesday following the release of weak consumer confidence data and JOLTS figures showing that vacancies fell to 8.827m in August from 9.165m in July - the lowest level since March 2021.

Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets, Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "What appears to be bad news for the US economy is being notched up as good news for equities with a weakening jobs snapshot and slide in consumer confidence lifting indices. Signs of America's cooling economy have raised hopes that the pause button will be pushed on punishing interest rate hikes.

"The more optimistic tone has pushed the FTSE 100 up in early trade, offsetting ongoing concerns about the fragility of China's economy. The positive vibes are expected to keep reverberating with stock futures pointing to a positive start for Wall Street. A raft of other figures, including estimates of US economic growth in the second quarter, will be picked through today to see if the information backs up expectations that central bank policymakers at the Federal Reserve will leave rates unchanged.

"Chair Jerome Powell said last week that another interest rate hike could still be on the table, but it's all going to depend on the data. Data is king right now in terms of market sentiment and the non-farm payrolls snapshot out on Friday will crown the week. If it points to a fresh slowdown in hirings, we could see another spurt in stock prices."

Looking ahead to the rest of the day, investors were eyeing UK net lending, consumer credit and mortgage approvals for July at 0930 BST. In the US, the latest ADP employment report is due at 1315 BST, while Q2 GDP data is at 1330 BST.

In equity markets, Prudential was the top riser on the FTSE 100 after the insurer posted a better-than-expected 6% rise in first-half operating profits as Chinese investors bought its products in Hong Kong after Covid restrictions were lifted. It also outlined a new investment strategy pivot towards Asia.

Engineering giant Smiths Group pushed higher after saying it was beefing up its US heating, ventilation and air conditioning operations with the purchase of Ohio-based Heating & Cooling Products for $82m.

Direct Line advanced as it appointed Adam Winslow as chief executive to succeed Jon Greenwood who has been acting CEO since January. Winslow, who will start with the insurance company in the first quarter of 2024, has led Aviva's UK and Ireland general insurance business.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,503.21 0.51% FTSE 250 (MCX) 18,555.18 0.47% techMARK (TASX) 4,307.87 0.38%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Prudential (PRU) 1,019.00p 3.47% Persimmon (PSN) 1,063.00p 2.31% Fresnillo (FRES) 581.60p 1.93% Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 114.65p 1.55% Rio Tinto (RIO) 4,895.50p 1.48% Ocado Group (OCDO) 793.60p 1.46% Mondi (MNDI) 1,327.00p 1.41% Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 43.47p 1.32% Smith (DS) (SMDS) 312.20p 1.30% Barclays (BARC) 151.90p 1.29%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 143.40p -1.14% Kingfisher (KGF) 234.00p -1.10% SSE (SSE) 1,640.00p -0.67% Entain (ENT) 1,158.50p -0.64% International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 162.15p -0.58% Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 678.20p -0.47% Flutter Entertainment (CDI) (FLTR) 14,295.00p -0.38% United Utilities Group (UU.) 936.40p -0.38% St James's Place (STJ) 875.00p -0.36% Severn Trent (SVT) 2,400.00p -0.33%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Helios Towers (HTWS) 92.35p 3.76% Baltic Classifieds Group (BCG) 215.50p 2.62% NCC Group (NCC) 102.00p 2.62% Spirent Communications (SPT) 159.20p 2.25% Mitie Group (MTO) 96.00p 2.13% Direct Line Insurance Group (DLG) 163.80p 1.90% Future (FUTR) 764.00p 1.87% Apax Global Alpha Limited (APAX) 170.00p 1.80% Marshalls (MSLH) 273.20p 1.79% Ferrexpo (FXPO) 77.90p 1.76%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Bakkavor Group (BAKK) 98.00p -1.80% Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 2,227.00p -0.93% Drax Group (DRX) 552.20p -0.83% Savills (SVS) 909.00p -0.66% Serco Group (SRP) 152.00p -0.65% TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 476.60p -0.58% LXI Reit (LXI) 92.45p -0.48% Pennon Group (PNN) 642.00p -0.47% Edinburgh Inv Trust (EDIN) 650.00p -0.46% Balanced Commercial Property Trust Limited (BCPT) 67.30p -0.44%