Sector movers: UK equities outperform led by commodity-related stocks

(Sharecast News) - Oil and Gas shares paced gains on the FSTE 350 on Tuesday, helping the broader UK stock market to outperform its peers. Triggering the move was news the day before that Saudi had refuted a Wall Street Journal report that the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries might be set to announce a small production increase at its next meeting to offset the possible loss of Russian supplies.

The WSJ report came two days before Washington was, according to sources cited by Bloomberg, set to propose to the European Union a level for a price cap on Russian oil exports.

Miners were higher alongside, as the US dollar index retraced part of the prior session's gains, helping to put a bid into commodity prices.

The Greenback had rebounded at the start of the week on reports of the first Covid-19 deaths in China for six months.

Some reports on Tuesday continued to point to still rising case numbers in Asia's largest economy.

Nonetheless, some economists were hopeful that stimulus measures would resume following the Chinese Communist Party's 20th National Congress in October.

On the other hand, in a research note sent to clients, analysts at Barclays Research said: "Mobility in China remains depressed and oil markets are tied to that spot fundamental reality.

"Our economists remain cautious about a sharp uptick in activity due to a potential reopening, justifying our relatively conservative demand estimates for the country."

More positively, crude oil and refined product exports from Russian were running 300,000 barrels a day ahead month-on-month in November, largely in-line with the pre-war average.

US output on the other hand was trending approximately 200,000 b/d below Barclays's forecast for the fourth quarter of 2022.

Defence shares were also wanted with Babcock doing especially well after the engineer's chief executive officer said that it was in talks - albeit not yet formal negotiations - with five countries in regards to its Type 31 frigate design.

Top performing sectors so far today

Oil, Gas and Coal 8,326.27 +5.10%

Industrial Metals & Mining 7,359.12 +2.86%

Precious Metals and Mining 10,762.83 +2.21%

Aerospace and Defence 4,821.20 +1.97%

Electricity 10,598.21 +1.74%

Bottom performing sectors so far today

Automobiles & Parts 1,296.76 -2.64%

Telecommunications Service Providers 2,386.11 -2.10%

Retailers 3,157.67 -1.32%

Construction & Materials 6,874.38 -1.06%

Real Estate Investment Trusts 2,362.21 -0.64%