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 rise at start of busy week
(Sharecast News) - London markets closed with gains on Monday as investors exercised caution ahead of key events later in the week. The FTSE 100 index edged up 0.41% to reach 7,943.47 points, while the FTSE 250 rose 0.65% to settle at 19,854.58 points.
The positive performance came amid anticipation surrounding the European Central Bank's policy announcement and the start of the US earnings season in the coming days.
In currency markets, sterling was last up 0.13% on the dollar, trading at $1.2654, while it remained steady against the euro to change hands at €1.1661.
"The Nikkei 225 rallied , with European stock indices playing catch-up despite US bond yields rising to four-and-a-half month highs, putting a dampener on the advance in their domestic market," said IG senior market analyst Axel Rudolph.
"Quiet post non-farm payrolls trading ahead of Wednesday's US FOMC minutes and CPI print dominated the trading session.
"German exports dropping by more than expected and industrial output growth topping forecasts weren't closely followed by traders earlier in the day."
Rudolph added that, while gold prices hit another record high and silver prices traded at levels last seen in June 2021, oil prices dropped by more than one percentage point on easing tensions in the Middle East.
"While Israel is removing troops from Southern Gaza it has also resumed peace talks with Hamas in Egypt."
Eurozone investor sentiment improves, German industrial production grows faster
In economic news, eurozone investor sentiment showed a notable improvement in April, marking the sixth consecutive month of gains, according to a closely-watched survey.
The Sentix index for the euro area climbed to -5.9 points in April from -10.5 points in March, surpassing expectations of -8.5 points and reaching its highest level since February 2022.
Additionally, the eurozone expectations index rose to 5.0 points in April from -2.3 points in March, marking the seventh consecutive month of increases and reaching its highest level since February 2022.
"Will there finally be a sustainable economic upturn? At least the economic recovery in the eurozone and worldwide is continuing," Sentix said in a statement.
"The economic signals are also stabilising internationally.
"The upturn is also gaining breadth internationally - across all regions, with the exception of Austria, we are measuring improvements in the economic situation and expectations."
Meanwhile, data from Destatis showed that industrial production in Germany saw its fastest growth rate in over a year in February, driven by a strong performance in the construction sector.
Industrial production surged by 2.1% in February, marking the second consecutive monthly increase following a revised 1.3% uptick in January.
February's growth far exceeded economists' expectations of a 0.3% increase, representing the swiftest monthly expansion since January last year.
Despite a 4.9% decline compared to the previous year, which was an improvement from January's 5.3% drop, February's production figures showcased resilience.
Notably, construction output soared by 7.9% in February, offsetting a 6.5% decline in energy production.
Excluding those factors, overall industrial production would still have risen by 1.9% from January, driven by robust performances in the automotive and chemical sectors.
In contrast, German exports experienced a setback in February, declining by 2% to €132.9 billion, disappointing analysts who had anticipated a milder 0.5% decrease.
Entain jumps on takeover speculation, retailers decline
On London's equity markets, Entain surged 4.7% following reports in the Times suggesting potential interest from private equity firm Apollo in making a takeover offer for some or all of the business.
Precious metals miners Fresnillo and Hochschild Mining saw gains of 2.58% and 5.37% respectively, as gold prices advanced.
Mining giants Rio Tinto and Anglo American also recorded positive movements, rising by 4.21% and 3.21% respectively.
Rio Tinto drew additional attention with the appointment of Bold Baatar as its chief commercial officer, succeeding Alf Barrios, to oversee its global commercial and business development operations.
On the downside, Ocado Group and Marks & Spencer Group both experienced losses, falling 1.21% and 2.15% respectively.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,943.47 0.41% FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,854.58 0.65% techMARK (TASX) 4,440.98 -0.38%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Entain (ENT) 825.00p 5.23% Rio Tinto (RIO) 5,184.00p 4.21% easyJet (EZJ) 577.80p 3.33% Anglo American (AAL) 2,155.00p 3.21% Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 884.00p 3.08% Airtel Africa (AAF) 106.20p 2.81% Beazley (BEZ) 675.50p 2.66% Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,190.00p 2.63% Fresnillo (FRES) 556.00p 2.58% International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 175.65p 2.30%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Sage Group (SGE) 1,212.50p -2.77% Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 15,535.00p -2.26% Severn Trent (SVT) 2,382.00p -1.89% Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 256.50p -1.80% Rightmove (RMV) 535.20p -1.76% JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 124.45p -1.43% Haleon (HLN) 321.60p -1.32% London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 9,256.00p -1.30% Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,839.00p -1.29% Ocado Group (OCDO) 375.10p -1.21%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 145.40p 6.75% PPHE Hotel Group Ltd (PPH) 1,435.00p 6.69% Ferrexpo (FXPO) 46.25p 4.99% Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 167.30p 4.76% IP Group (IPO) 46.15p 3.48% Carnival (CCL) 1,108.00p 3.31% Caledonia Investments (CLDN) 3,365.00p 3.22% TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 673.50p 3.22% Me Group International (MEGP) 172.80p 2.98% HGCapital Trust (HGT) 491.50p 2.93%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
W.A.G Payment Solutions (WPS) 67.20p -2.61% Pennon Group (PNN) 637.00p -2.52% Breedon Group (BREE) 379.00p -2.32% Future (FUTR) 682.50p -2.08% FirstGroup (FGP) 176.80p -1.78% Trainline (TRN) 363.20p -1.52% North Atlantic Smaller Companies Inv Trust (NAS) 3,590.00p -1.37% Abrdn Private Equity Opportunities Trust (APEO) 532.00p -1.30% Barr (A.G.) (BAG) 578.00p -1.20% PureTech Health (PRTC) 215.50p -1.15%
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.