The FTSE 100 is up 0.5% on Wednesday morning, with the FTSE 250 also trading 0.5% higher.
The DAX has gained 0.5%, the CAC 40 0.4% and the Stoxx 50 0.7%. Meanwhile, mining stocks are climbing amid higher metals prices. Spot gold is up 0.4% at $4,067, while silver has advanced 2.6%, copper 1% and palladium 5.3%.
FTSE 100 movers
Spirax leads the risers so far this morning, up 4.55% at 7,690p, after a trading update said ten-month organic sales growth and margin were “in line with expectations and ahead of the first half”. Guidance was reiterated, not raised. Antofagasta rises 3.43% to 3,345.5p.
ICG is also a strong mover, climbing 3.33% to 2,018p despite profit before tax falling 18% to £287.3m. Fee-related earnings, its recurring management-fee profit, rose 18% to £199m, it set a new medium-term target of zero net debt, and the interim dividend is 29.0p, up from 27.7p.
JD Sports has lost 1.50% to 96.16p, Coca-Cola HBC is down 1.13% to 4,201p and Diageo has declined 1.08% to 1,875p.
FTSE 250 movers
In the FTSE 250, Meridian Mining has advanced 5.61% to 96.1p, ASOS 5.05% to 459.25p and Volex 3.89% to 561p.
THG has dropped 3.55% to 37.96p and SDCL Energy Efficiency Income Trust is down 2.52% to 31.55p.
ITV is also on the slide, trading 3.52% lower at 64.45p after it said third-quarter total advertising revenue fell 8% and guided the fourth quarter down around 5-10%. Chief Executive Carolyn McCall said: “Demand for advertising in H2 has weakened.”
Taylor Wimpey is another decliner, currently 2.33% lower at 80.5p after it guided to around 10,500 completions and profit around the bottom of the £262m-£299m consensus range. Chief Executive Jennie Daly said: “The Autumn selling season has been more subdued, as higher mortgage rates and living costs continue to reduce customer affordability.”
Oil and the Middle East
Brent is up 1.4% at $92.77 and WTI 0.9% at $86.86. Iran’s army said an oil tanker caught fire in the eastern Strait of Hormuz after hitting a naval mine in a “restricted area”, Al Jazeera reported. Iranian security chief Mohsen Rezaei dismissed reports of US talks with Tehran.
Other News
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has said that a merger of Unilever’s food business with US firm McCormick could result in less competition in the market for dry ingredients and sauce mixes.
The CMA is looking into the tie-up, which was announced in March.
Elsewhere on Wednesday, a Wall Street Journal report says Payward will launch tokenized versions of UK and European stocks, tradable on Kraken and other exchanges from today.