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Stocks on the FTSE 100 were moving slightly higher at the end of the month, ahead of a big day for economic data and company results on both sides of the Atlantic.
All ahead of Friday’s non-farm payrolls release for the month of April in the States.
“Markets are riding a razor’s edge this week, with tariff distortion bleeding into macro prints and the dollar losing altitude fast. The greenback’s early-week wobble wasn’t just noise—it’s the market sniffing out that the next real catalyst could be a full-blown data-driven unwind,” said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.
“The Bank of Japan may be grabbing headlines into Thursday, but let’s not kid ourselves—Friday’s U.S. jobs report is the real macro landmine this week.”
Against that backdrop, as of 0924 GMT, the FTSE 100 was edging up by 0.06% to 8,468.74, alongside a 0.43% gain for the second-tier index to 19,897.79.
In parallel, S&P 500 mini futures were little changed, slipping by 6.75 points to 5,577.0.
On home shores, Nationwide reported a 0.6% month-on-month drop in UK house prices during the month of March (consensus: 0.1%).
That was their largest decline in nearly two years, although in annual terms they were 3.4% higher.
Overnight, China’s National Bureau of Statistics reported a decline in its manufacturing sector Purchasing Manager’s Index from 50.8 during the month of March to 50.4 in April (consensus: 50.7).
Private sector survey compiler Caixin also said that its factory PMI declined, from 51.2 to 50.4.
But economists had been anticipating an even lower print of 49.9 for the Caixin gauge.
In the market spotlight for Wednesday, at 1230 GMT the US Department of Commerce was set to release a preliminary reading on first quarter GDP growth.
It would come alongside reading for the US first quarter Employment Cost Index and the latest reading on the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, the monthly core PCE price deflator.
Meta Platforms and Microsoft were scheduled to publish their latest quarterly results after the close of markets in New York.
Acquisitions continue apace at Bunzl
Bunzl has agreed to acquire Hospitalia, a major healthcare distributor in Chile, marking its entry into the Chilean healthcare sector, it announced on Wednesday, with the deal pending competition authority approval. The FTSE 100 company said Hospitalia generated approximately £21m in revenue in 2024. Separately, Bunzl said it has completed the acquisition of Inpakomed in the Netherlands.
Barclays Bank lifted bad loan provisions in response to macroeconomic uncertainty in the US as it also reported a better-than-expected 19% rise in pre-tax profit to £2.7bn. Credit impairment charges increased to £643m from £513m a year ago, primarily driven by a £74m adjustment for “elevated US macroeconomic uncertainty” and the impact of the Tesco Bank acquisition.
Luxury carmaker Aston Martin is limiting exports to the US in response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs and also managed to post narrower-than-expected first-quarter losses.
Glencore reported a sharp decline in copper production during the first quarter on Wednesday, while output of cobalt and steelmaking coal rose strongly, supported by higher grades and recent acquisitions.
Consumer healthcare giant Haleon reiterated its full-year guidance on Wednesday, despite an increasingly “challenging and uncertain” macroeconomic backdrop. The owner of Sensodyne toothpaste, Centrum vitamins and Panadol, among others brands, said revenues in the three months to March grew 3.5% on an organic constant currency basis, to £2.85bn, boosted by increases in both prices and volumes. On a reported basis, revenues fell 2.3%.
Top 10 FTSE 100 Risers
| Sponsored by Plus500 |
|
| # | Name | Change Pct | Change | Cur Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Smith & Nephew Plc | +6.43% | +64.00 | 1,060.00 |
| 2 |  |
Gsk Plc | +4.50% | +64.50 | 1,496.50 |
| 3 |  |
Sse Plc | +2.37% | +39.00 | 1,683.00 |
| 4 |  |
Associated British Foods Plc | +2.31% | +47.00 | 2,081.00 |
| 5 |  |
Coca-cola Hbc Ag | +2.08% | +78.00 | 3,832.00 |
| 6 |  |
Pearson Plc | +2.03% | +23.50 | 1,178.50 |
| 7 |  |
British American Tobacco Plc | +2.03% | +64.00 | 3,220.00 |
| 8 |  |
Astrazeneca Plc | +1.81% | +192.00 | 10,810.00 |
| 9 |  |
Diageo Plc | +1.70% | +35.00 | 2,093.00 |
| 10 |  |
Wpp Plc | +1.69% | +9.60 | 578.60 |
Top 10 FTSE 100 Fallers
| Sponsored by Plus500 |
|
| # | Name | Change Pct | Change | Cur Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Glencore Plc | -5.21% | -13.75 | 250.15 |
| 2 |  |
Anglo American Plc | -3.90% | -83.00 | 2,044.50 |
| 3 |  |
Lloyds Banking Group Plc | -3.47% | -2.54 | 70.64 |
| 4 |  |
Banco Santander S.a. | -3.34% | -18.00 | 521.00 |
| 5 |  |
Antofagasta Plc | -3.28% | -55.50 | 1,638.50 |
| 6 |  |
Hsbc Holdings Plc | -3.02% | -25.80 | 829.80 |
| 7 |  |
Natwest | -2.76% | -13.40 | 471.30 |
| 8 |  |
South32 Limited | -2.56% | -3.40 | 129.40 |
| 9 |  |
Prudential Plc | -2.39% | -19.20 | 784.80 |
| 10 |  |
Rio Tinto Plc | -2.31% | -105.00 | 4,441.50 |
US close: Stocks rise for sixth day as trade fears ease
Wall Street stocks finished higher for the sixth straight day on the back of reported progress in recent US trade talks, as investors digested a long list of economic data releases and corporate earnings.
The Dow rose 0.8% while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both gained 0.6%, as markets continued to claw their way back to pre-Liberation Day levels.
“The S&P is ripping higher, clocking in a six-day surge north of 8%, putting it on pace for its best winning run since Q1 2022. That’s despite a macro minefield littered with crumbling consumer confidence, wobbly labour data, and uncertainty around earnings rollouts from marquee names,” said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.
US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick said in a CNBC interview that he had reached a deal with an undisclosed country, while treasury secretary Scott Bessent said the administration was making progress on negotiations with India, South Korea and Japan.
Sentiment was also lifted after Trump softened the impact on carmakers from his tariff regime. The president confirmed that auto tariffs would not stretch to steel and aluminium imports, easing certain sector-specific fears and pushing shares in US-based carmakers mostly higher.
Nevertheless, Lukman Otunuga, senior market analyst at FXTM, cautioned investors to tread carefully ahead of a busy few days for financial markets.
“This week could set the tone for the months ahead. Trade developments, big tech earnings, and critical US economic indicators are all converging at once. Investors should brace for heightened market volatility, particularly across equities, forex, and commodities,” Otunuga said.
Market participants were also patiently awaiting quarterly earnings reports from several big-tech firms, with Meta Platforms and Microsoft slated to report on Wednesday, while Apple and Amazon were scheduled to release their latest quarterly numbers on Thursday.
Data barrage kicks off
In economic news on Tuesday, US consumer confidence dropped for the fifth straight month to its lowest level since May 2020. The Conference Board’s sentiment gauge declined 7.9 points to 86.0 in April, missing the 78.3 consensus forecast.
US job openings at a seasonally adjusted pace of 3.9% in March to 7.192m, short of the 7.5m consensus estimate, while February’s figures were revised lower. Hiring however was up by 0.8% when compared with February to reach 5.411m.
The US trade deficit in goods increased sharply in March, up to $162.0bn in March for the widest on record, and above consensus estimates for a reading of a $146.0bn, according to an advance estimate from the Census Bureau.
US wholesale inventories rose by 0.5% month-on-month to $908.0bn in March, according to preliminary numbers from the Census Bureau, matching February’s increase but falling short of market expectations for a 0.7% gain.
Lastly, S&P Case-Shiller’s home price index increased to 335.08 points in February, up from 332.72 points in January.
Earnings in focus
General Motors slipped despite beating quarterly profit expectations as the Chevrolet and Buick maker withdrew its FY guidance as a result of tariff uncertainty. The company also suspended further stock buybacks as it looks to deal with cost increases associated with said levies.
Coca-Cola edged higher after topping both earnings and revenue estimates and claiming that the effects of the current global trade spat to be “manageable”.
Shipping courier UPS was in the red as investors shrugged off forecast-beating first-quarter earnings, and focused on the news of 20,000 job cuts and the planned closure of multiple buildings. The moves were being taken to offset an expected reduction in Amazon volumes and economic uncertainty stemming from tariffs.
A number of other household names were making moves after publishing their first-quarter earnings: Spotify missed estimates with profits; Royal Caribbean gained as stronger-than-expected profits outweighed a miss on revenues; while Honeywell jumped as both top and bottom lines smashed estimates.
In other news, the Trump administration took aim at Amazon on Tuesday for reportedly planning to display the impact of so-called “Liberation Day” tariffs next to the total price of products on its website. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the move was a “hostile and political act” by Amazon, whose shares finished slightly lower.
Wednesday newspaper round-up: Net zero, trans bathrooms, Trump trade deal, Amazon, Spain blackouts
The push for net zero has become “irrational” because people in developed countries are being asked to make “financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle” that will make little difference, Sir Tony Blair has warned as he called for a “reset” of climate policies. The former prime minister said that a backlash against climate change policies threatened to “derail the whole agenda”, in the latest sign that the mainstream consensus on green policies is collapsing. – The Times
Barclays is to ban trans women from using female lavatories in the wake of this month’s Supreme Court ruling. The bank said it would review its internal policy on the use of bathrooms to ensure that it complied with the law after judges ruled that trans women can now be excluded from single-sex facilities. The Telegraph understands that means a policy of allowing trans women to use whichever lavatory they want will be dropped. – Telegraph
Donald Trump has made a trade deal with the UK a second-order priority, sources have told the Guardian, hampering British attempts to meet their mid-May deadline. US officials have decided to split their negotiations with more than a dozen other countries into three phases, with the UK being placed in either phase two or three, according to people who have been briefed on the talks. – Guardian
President Trump personally called Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos to complain after reports that the world’s biggest retailer planned to display the surcharge from US tariffs in the price tag of products on its website. Amazon denied having such a plan on Tuesday after the backlash from the White House on the day that Trump marked his first 100 days in office. – The Times
The power cuts that swept across Spain, Portugal and parts of southern France plunged the Iberian peninsula into chaos. But as fresh details emerge, it seems the cause of Europe’s biggest-ever blackout can be traced back to just five crucial seconds. Red Eléctrica de España, which manages the Spanish national grid, says the crisis erupted owing to a rapid sequence of events that unfolded at Monday lunchtime. – Telegraph
The UK boss of Ikea has backed calls to pedestrianise Oxford Street as the world’s largest furniture retailer finally opens its delayed store in London’s prime shopping destination. The Swedish company’s three-floor shop in the building that used to be Topshop’s former flagship store, with a mix of meatballs, lampshades and kitchen design assistance, opens on Thursday, 18 months later than planned. – Guardian
