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Stocks on the FTSE 100 are moving higher after Beijing opened the door to trade talks with Washington and Brussels offered to increase its purchases of US goods.
As of 0806 GMT, the FTSE 100 was adding 72.33 points or 0.84% to 8,568.51, whilst the S&P mini futures contract was up by 24.50 points at 5,649.50.
China’s Commerce Ministry issued a statement overnight highlighting what it said were repeated expressions of a willingness to negotiate on the part of US officials.
“This news broke at 01:20am London time and hence the lack of denial by Washington could mean this development may be a credible sign of some thawing in the stand-off on commencing talks,” MUFG analyst Derek Halpenny said.
Halpenny also noted the interview with Maros Sefcovic published by the FT, in which the EU trade commissioner said that the bloc was offering to up its purchases of US goods by $50bn in order to address the trade imbalance.
Sefcovic also said that “certain progress” had been made.
On a dourer note, the BBC reported on a FOX News interview, this time with US vice-president JD Vance, who said that the war in Ukraine was not going to end “any time soon”.
Against that backdrop, at 1230 GMT the US Department of Labor would release its non-farm payrolls report for the month of April (consensus: 138,000), which could conceivably set the tone for trading in financial markets during the month of May.
On the other side of the Channel, S&P Global announced that its euro area manufacturing sector Purchasing Managers’ Index improved printed at 49.0 for the month of April, which was better than the 48.6 recorded in March.
A preliminary reading for euro area consumer prices in April would follow an hour later.
Shell approves 13th consecutive quarterly share buyback programme of over $3bn
Shell posted better-than-expected first quarter adjusted earnings and launched a fresh $3.5bn share buyback programme. The oil major’s adjusted profit reached $5.58bn (consensus: $4.96bn) on $69.23bn of revenues, for earnings per share of 92 US cents. Cash flow from operations came in at $9.28bn (consensus: $9.6bn). Net debt at period end stood at $41.52bn. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of 35.8 US cents.
Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered reported better-than-expected first-quarter profit, driven by strong growth in its wealth management, but also warned of the impact of US President Donald Trump’s trade war. Pre-tax profit for the three months to March came in at $2.10bn, up from $1.91bn and the $1.905bn consensus average. “Imposition of trade tariffs has increased global economic and geopolitical complexity, and we remain watchful of the external environment,” said chief executive Bill Winters.
Pearson reported a 1% increase in underlying first-quarter group sales on Friday, and confirmed it was on track to meet its full-year guidance, with stronger growth anticipated in the second half. The FTSE 100 education publisher said all business units performed in line with expectations, including a 6% rise in higher education sales. It also said that it was advancing its strategic goals through product innovation, contract wins, a brand relaunch, and the launch of a £350m share buyback programme.
Top 10 FTSE 100 Risers
| Sponsored by Plus500 |
|
| # | Name | Change Pct | Change | Cur Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Banco Santander S.a. | +5.74% | +29.00 | 534.00 |
| 2 |  |
Melrose Industries Plc | +3.15% | +13.70 | 448.40 |
| 3 |  |
Haleon | +3.14% | +12.20 | 400.90 |
| 4 |  |
Shell Plc | +2.93% | +71.50 | 2,508.00 |
| 5 |  |
Rentokil Initial Plc | +2.71% | +9.40 | 356.30 |
| 6 |  |
South32 Limited | +1.66% | +2.20 | 134.60 |
| 7 |  |
Compass Group Plc | +1.64% | +41.00 | 2,543.00 |
| 8 |  |
Rio Tinto Plc | +1.63% | +72.00 | 4,502.00 |
| 9 |  |
Anglo American Plc | +1.53% | +32.00 | 2,129.00 |
| 10 |  |
Intertek Group Plc | +1.26% | +58.00 | 4,652.00 |
Top 10 FTSE 100 Fallers
| Sponsored by Plus500 |
|
| # | Name | Change Pct | Change | Cur Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Pearson Plc | -2.26% | -26.50 | 1,148.00 |
| 2 |  |
Smurfit Westrock Plc | -1.75% | -55.00 | 3,079.00 |
| 3 |  |
Lloyds Banking Group Plc | -1.60% | -1.14 | 70.20 |
| 4 |  |
Marks And Spencer Group Plc | -1.50% | -5.70 | 375.00 |
| 5 |  |
Sainsbury (j) Plc | -1.27% | -3.40 | 264.60 |
| 6 |  |
Beazley Plc | -1.01% | -9.00 | 884.50 |
| 7 |  |
Sse Plc | -0.94% | -16.00 | 1,691.00 |
| 8 |  |
Ferguson Enterprises Inc. | -0.93% | -120.00 | 12,820.00 |
| 9 |  |
Standard Chartered Plc | -0.77% | -8.50 | 1,088.50 |
| 10 |  |
United Utilities Group Plc | -0.75% | -8.50 | 1,123.50 |
US close: Stocks higher as investors cheer tech earnings
Major indices closed higher on Thursday as investors cheered quarterly earnings beats from tech giants Meta Platforms and Microsoft.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.21% at 40,752.96, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.86% to 5,617.17 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.78% firmer at 17,757.22.
The Dow closed 83.60 points higher on Thursday, extending gains recorded in the previous session despite news that gross domestic product had fallen at an annualised pace of 0.3% in Q1 to mark the first quarter of negative growth since Q122.
Meta Platforms traded higher on the back of stronger-than-expected Q1 revenues, while Microsoft shares were also in the green thanks to top and bottom-line beats in its fiscal Q3, as well as strong results from its Azure cloud business and some upbeat guidance.
Pharmacy chain operator CVS Health hiked its FY profit guidance as its improving Medicare unit helped drive a better-than-expected quarterly showing, while drugmaker Eli Lilly cut its FY earnings guidance on the back of research charges and disappointing weight-loss drug sales, and fast food giant McDonald’s missed quarterly sales estimates as it recorded its largest drop in customer numbers since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Also in focus, Tesla shares traded higher after the electric carmaker denied reports that it had opened a search for a new chief executive to replace Elon Musk.
On the macro front, Americans lined up for unemployment benefits at an accelerated pace in the week ended 26 April, according to the Department of Labor. Initial jobless claims rose by 18,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis to 241,000, the highest since February and much higher than expectations for a reading of 224,000. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, initial claims increased by 12,901 to 223,614, with notable increases in New York and Massachusetts. Outstanding claims rose by 83,000 to 1.91m, the highest since November 2021 and also ahead of market expectations of 1.86m, while the four-week moving average came to 226,000, an increase of 5,500 week-on-week.
Elsewhere, S&P Global‘s manufacturing PMI was revised down to 50.2 in April, unchanged month-on-month but short of preliminary estimates of 50.7. In terms of inflation, input cost growth eased from March’s two-and-a-half-year high, while output prices increased at their fastest rate since 2023.
On another note, the Institute for Supply Management‘s manufacturing PMI slipped to 48.7 in April, down from 49.0 in March but slightly above market expectations of 48. The reading pointed to a second straight month of contraction in the manufacturing sector, with output dropping from 48.3 to 44.0. The survey also showed that manufacturers were struggling to deal with rising costs and margin pressure amid ongoing trade uncertainty that has disrupted supply chains.
Finally, construction spending shrank by 0.5% month-on-month to $2.19trn in March, according to the Census Bureau, following a downwardly revised 0.6% increase in February and missing consensus estimates of a 0.2% rise. Private sector spending declined by 0.6% in the period, while public spending edged down 0.2%.
Friday newspaper round-up: Harrods, USD1, European ETFs
Staff at the Co-op have been ordered to keep their cameras on during remote meetings to verify attendees while Marks & Spencer has halted all recruitment as the companies tackle cyber attacks. Both retailers have had to shut down parts of their IT systems after hackers infiltrated their networks with alleged ransomware attacks. Harrods, the luxury London department store, became the third household name to confirm it had fallen victim to cyber criminals on Thursday. – The Times
A stablecoin launched by Donald Trump’s World Liberty Financial cryptocurrency venture is being used by an Abu Dhabi investment firm for its $2bn investment in crypto exchange Binance, one of World Liberty’s co-founders said on Thursday. World Liberty, which aims to allow people to access financial services without intermediaries like banks, said in March it would launch USD1, a dollar-pegged stablecoin backed by US treasuries, dollars and other cash equivalents. – Guardian
Investors piled record amounts into European exchange-traded investment funds at the start of 2025 as capital flowed out of US assets, fresh data suggests. US President Donald Trump’s imposition of tariffs on imports from around the world has seen investors reposition their exposure away from the country. During the opening three months of the year, the European ETF market saw inflows of $93billion of net new assets as Trump threatened and later imposed tariffs on trade partners, according to figures from Invesco. – Daily Mail
The incoming boss of National Grid has raised concerns about the pace of net zero and said that oil will be needed for decades. Zoë Yujnovich, who will take up the role of National Grid chief executive in November, previously warned that the journey to net zero “must be achieved whilst providing a stable and reliable supply of energy”. – Daily Telegraph
