By Patrick Munnelly, Market Strategist, Tickmill
At the closing bell, the UK’s benchmark FTSE 100 index finished Friday up 14 points on the day, at 7642.72.
The UK’s FTSE 100 index opened higher on Friday, driven by gains in energy and mining stocks, the resource-heavy FTSE 100 was up 0.3% heading into the final session of the week. The index, which benefits from a softer Sterling and is heavily reliant on exports, was poised for its first weekly gain in four, the blue chip index had been supported by the performance of mining companies this week and the weakness of sterling. The prices of crude oil and metals influenced the positive movement of mining and energy stocks earlier in the week, however, as the close approaches the miners or giving back some of this week’s gains as Sterling trades above 1.28 against the greenback.
FTSE 100 biggest movers
On the positive side of the ledger Tesco PLC LON:TSCO delivered positive results on pricing pressures, reporting an 8.2% increase in group like-for-like sales, primarily driven by a strong performance in the UK market. During the 13-week period ending on May 27, the largest retailer in the UK revealed a 9% rise in like-for-like sales specifically within the UK. This robust performance was observed across all formats and channels, highlighting the company’s strength in the domestic market. The upbeat Tesco performance, which ironically closed down on the day by 0.61% led to additional gains in Ocado LON:OCDO which has now surged nearly 25% in a week, sitting at the top of the table after adding a further 7.42% today.
On the negative side of the ledger the devaluation in the Nigerian Naira has led Airtel Africa LON:AAF to issue negative guidance a 1% devaluation could account for a $22 million hit to the top line arising to a $12million impact on EBITDA and an additional $7 million of unaccounted finance costs as such the business sits at the bottom of the table today nursing losses in excess of 3.5%
Investors are eagerly awaiting domestic inflation data and the Bank of England rate decision scheduled for next week. This comes after the US Federal Reserve’s hawkish stance and the European Central Bank’s 25-basis-point rate hike earlier this week.
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