The FTSE 100 was up 0.4% in early trading on Thursday, with company results setting London’s tone, while the FTSE 250 added 0.1%. On the continent, the DAX and CAC 40 are both up 0.4%.
Oil and the Fed
Brent is down around 0.8% at $110.75, having stayed above $110 since 23 October.
Iran says the Strait of Hormuz stays shut until the US accepts its seven-day reopening plan. Gold fell 1.1% to $4,022 and sterling slipped 0.2% to $1.3306.
On Wednesday, the Fed held rates at 3.75%-4%, with two of 12 members voting for a rise. Chair Kevin Warsh said “Inflation is too high”. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 gained around 0.3% in yesterday’s session.
Earnings movers
Shell (LSE: SHEL) rose 3.17% to 4,082p as it reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $10,814m, against $5,432m a year earlier, and a new $5.0bn buyback.
Haleon (LSE: HLN), the consumer health group, has plunged 11.98% to 329.20p. Third-quarter organic revenue growth was 2.6%, held back by soft cold and flu consumption, which meant lower orders in North America, and a raw material classification change for Centrum OTC products in China.
St James’s Place fell 3.55% after net inflows of £0.57bn, down from £1.76bn a year earlier, though funds under management hit a record £242.4bn.
Lloyds (LSE: LLOY) dropped 2.79% to 100.97p despite reiterating 2026 guidance.
In the FTSE 250, Rank Group fell 4.09% after saying Machine Games Duty rises from 20% to 25% from 1 April 2027, costing about £9m a year before mitigation.
UK Budget
Yesterday’s Budget, Chancellor John Healey’s first, did not unsettle markets. Fidelity International’s Tom Stevenson said the 10-year gilt yield was around 5.3% at the start and end of the speech: “This was a Budget designed first and foremost not to rock the boat.”
The bank profit surcharge rises 3 points for 15 months, against 5 feared, and Fidelity said Lloyds, Barclays and NatWest were “usefully higher” yesterday.
Data today
UK mortgage approvals are due around 9:30 am and euro-area economic sentiment at 10 am. US third-quarter GDP, September PCE inflation and jobless claims follow around 12:30 pm, with the ECB rate decision around 1:15 pm.