The FTSE 100 is moving higher mid-morning, shrugging off negative sentiment after the G7 summit this weekend which, instead of an agreement on trade between the US and its main trade partners, ended up with angry tweets from President Trump.
“Just when we thought a G-7 joint statement had been reached after political advisors and draftsman strived through two nights to find words that appease all parties, US President Donald Trump took to Twitter to revoke his support,” says FX and CFD broker PhillipCapital.
Trump is due to meet North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore early Tuesday for a crucial summit which, if it goes well, could reduce military tensions over North Korea’s nuclear arsenal and pave the wave for a general opening up of the country towards Asia and the rest of the world.
Russian steel maker Evraz is leading the FTSE risers with a 7.61% increase to 531, followed by Emirati health chain NMC Health, up 4.72% at 3,596.
NMC shares rise after it signs Saudi deal
NMC Health has been performing consistently well this year, with stocks rising slowly and steadily, reflecting the company’s strategy of growing its business in Arab countries. NMC operates a number of hospitals primarily in the United Arab Emirates and some in Oman and Qatar and has made it is mission to further expand in the region. It said earlier this year that it has $800 million to spend on growing its infrastructure in the Gulf States and has followed that up with agreements with Oman this spring and a deal with Hassana Investment Company, the investment arm of Saudi Arabian pension fund – the news that triggered Monday’s rally.
Evraz rallies after a long stretch of declines
There was no particular news to trigger the bounce in Evraz shares Monday, instead the move was a technical reaction to recent moves. The shares in the Russian steel maker have been under pressure since May when the US brought in its second round of sanctions against Russian businesses, particularly the company’s owner Roman Abramovich but have started bouncing back after being oversold.
A word to the wise, however: Evraz, though a massive and mostly lucrative business, continues to carry high debt and some of its number of businesses struggle to remain in the black. But so far the company has been returning excess cash generated from operations to investors and this year’s dividend yield is pencilled in at 8.1% for the full year, followed by a 6.3% for 2019.
