The FTSE 100 edged up 0.1% at 7,465 points while the mid-cap FTSE 250 was up 0.3% at 21,916 points, bucking the trend in Asian and Europe where share prices slipped on renewed coronavirus worries in Japan and South Korea.
Brent oil prices were 0.3% lower at $58.6 and the pound was weaker by 0.3% at 1.288 to the dollar.
Topping the FTSE leader board was knee to hip replacement medical device company Smith & Nephew, (SN.) whose shares were up 7% to £19.8 as full-year sales beat analysts’ estimates, rising 4.8% to $5.14bn.
The company noted that its manufacturing facilities in China had not been affected by the coronavirus outbreak, while its revenues from the country grew 30% in 2019.
Lloyds Banking (LLOY) reported a 26% fall in full year pre-tax profit to £4.3bn on lower net interest income and provisions for payment protection insurance (PPI) claims.
Chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio said that the economy remained resilient and that ‘there is now a clearer sense of direction and some signs of an improving outlook’. He added: ‘We remain well placed to Help Britain Prosper, support our customers and deliver strong and sustainable returns for shareholders.’
The positive outlook buoyed the shares, up 2% to 57p. Lloyds is seen as a bellwether for the British economy as the country’s largest provider of home loans and one of its biggest backers of businesses.
Also on the rise were shares in defence company BAE Systems, (BA.), up 2% at 653p as the company reported 7% growth in earnings, in line with expectations. The company is guiding for mid-single digit growth in earnings, helped by work on F-35 fighter jets and its Qatar Typhoon contract. Sales in the Maritime businesses were up 5%, ahead of guidance, at £3.1bn.
Information management software group AVEVA (AVV) said in a trading statement it had achieved high single-digit growth in revenues in the first 10 months of the year, but flagged ‘the ongoing disruption in China, caused by the coronavirus, due to travel restrictions and office closures, is having some impact on sales in that country’. The shares were up 0.4% at £53.13.
Shares in online price comparison group Moneysupermarket (MONY) were on the charge, up 7.4% at 332.7p after the board said trading dynamics have improved in the first six weeks of 2020 and that the company is confident of delivering market expectations for the year.
Moving in the opposite direction were shares in recruitment firm Hays (HAS), down 1% at 160.6p on reporting that profit fell more than a fifth as net fees slipped on increased uncertainties and reduced business confidence across most of its main businesses.
Instruments and controls group Spectris (SXS) reported an adjusted operating profit boost of 3.7% for 2019, increasing to £258.1m, and proposed a £175m special dividend and share consolidation, in its full year results announcement. The shares traded 6% higher at £28.90.
Georgia’s largest retail bank TBC Bank (TBCG) reported a 19.8% increase in full-year net profit aided by a strong domestic economy, giving the shares a 5% lift to £13.78.
A full list of risers and fallers can be found HERE
