The FTSE 100 posts a modest gain of 2.4 points to 7,322.07 as a breakthrough has been made on Brexit negotiations. Overnight the European Commission decided that enough progress had been made to allow trade negotiations to begin. The market will also closely be watching the monthly industrial production figures due out today. Amid corporate news, housebuilder Berkeley (BKG) gains 5.1% to ...

Cancer technology company Angle (AGL:AIM) has taken another step towards commercialising its cell separation technology called Parsortix. Latest test data shows the system is capable of detecting if some cancercous masses are malignant or benign from a simple blood test. The clinical trials assessed pelvic masses shown up in 400 patients. The Parsortix system was able to tell the difference ...

The UK stock market gets off to a slow start in early trade on Tuesday with most market watchers predicting that the FTSE 100 will pare some of the gains made on Monday. The UK blue chip index closed 0.9% higher at 7,377.09 points yesterday, bolstered by strong gains among financials, miners and energy companies as oil prices firmed. Early deals show the FTSE 100 off by around 30 points at ...

The FTSE 100 falls 0.6% to 7,429, dragged down by weakness in mining and utility stocks. Sofa maker DFS (DFS) falls 22.3% to 197.75p after issuing a profit warning. The company says the trading environment has weakened beyond its expectations and that it has seen significant declines in footfall in its shops. That news prompts a sell-off in other retail stocks, particularly those with ...

The FTSE 100 is a handful of points higher at 7,552.83 as trading resumes after the terrorist attack at London Bridge over the weekend. Online groceries firm Ocado (OCDO) gains 6.6% to 336.8p as it flags the first international customer for its Ocado Smart Platform. The regional European retailer - which wishes to remain anonymous - will pay an up-front fee along with ongoing charges based on ...

In November 2011 the FTSE had just broken through 6,200 and the Bank of England’s key interest rates was 5% and rising. Could the FTSE 100 rise through the 7,000 mark by 2007, Shares asked? ‘As long as the Bank of England doesn’t keep tightening the screws, we should be OK’, we said. A year later rates were 5.75% and the FTSE did not hit 7,000 until early 2015. Key picks in that ...

In early dealings on Tuesday, the FTSE 100 drifts 25.36 points lower to 6,670 and the FTSE 250 is off 58.5 points at 16,809, London's indices tracking some mixed perfomances overnight from global markets as well as weaker oil prices. Leading mining stocks are among the notable fallers, with Rio Tinto (RIO) down 2.2% to £24.07 as second quarter production figures confirm a surge in iron ore ...

News that the NHS is to pay for a combination of drugs that have proved effective at treating skin cancer is a sign that the healthcare market is turning to immunotherapy to fight cancer. This has positive implications to investors in stocks such as AstraZeneca (AZN), Horizon Discovery (HZD:AIM) and SalvaRx (SALV:AIM). The announcement by the NHS follows a breakthrough in May in medical ...

Investors showed their appetite for cancer diagnostic developer Angle (AGL:AIM) on Wednesday by supporting a substantial share placing at a zero discount. The Guildford-based company, which has developed a liquid biopsy device to detect cancer, raised £10.2 million, more than a quarter of its market cap, by selling around 15.8 million shares at 64.5p each, bang on Tuesday’s closing ...

London stock markets rally in early trade on Wednesday as eurozone finance ministers agree to unlock €10 billion in bailout funds. The agreement, alongside the International Monetary Fund, will release fresh loans to Greece after agreeing the nation had met its obligations. This puts investors in bullish mood, coming on top of gains on Wall Street and in Asia overnight, with US new home sales ...

Early May 2016 saw a breakthrough in understanding breast cancer. Scientists say they now have a near-perfect picture of the genetic events that cause breast cancer. This strengthens the case for immunotherapy, a process which uses the body’s immune system to recognise and attack tumours. An estimate 4 million in the UK will be living with cancer in 2030, versus 2.5 million in 2015 according ...

UK stocks fall in early trade on Monday as oil prices plunge after global producers failed to agree on an output freeze to address the supply glut. The FTSE 100 index nudges around 15 points lower, or about 0.2%, to 6,328, with midcaps and smaller companies also off but by even more modest levels. The fairly predictable failure to secure a oil price freeze deal in Doha (17 Apr) nonetheless ...

London shares nudge modestly higher in early trade on Monday in a week shortened by the upcoming Easter break. Miners are the main drain on progress nut a mixed bag of pharma and supermarket stocks provide enough upward momentum to lift the FTSE 100 index around 13 point higher, or 0.2%, to 6,202. Gas meter installer and operator Smart Metering Systems (SMS:AIM) gains 2.3% to 400p as full-year ...

Cancer-focused liquid biopsy developer Angle (AGL:AIM) is months away from a decision by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) that could see its Parsortix device sold in the US. The £40 million cap filed the device, which identifies cancer cells in blood samples, with the US regulator six months ago. Approval would allow the device to be sold into the £8 billion a year clinical market for ...

UK shares barely budge in early trade on Tuesday, failing to make up much of yesterday's lower close, with a string of firming oil and mining, financials and property stocks. This after a mixed Wall Street and Asia overnight, as Europe ekes out mild gains. The benchmark FTSE 100 index nudges barely a point higher 6,035, although investors may turn more positive through the session as they digest ...

London shares nudge lower in early trade on Monday, surrendering some of Friday's solid gains, in the wake of a mixed session on Wall Street and in Asia overnight. Europe was lower, too. Miners, financials and pharmas were the primary blue-chip ballast. The FTSE 100 index limps around 24 points to 6,087, a 0.34% decline, a lead followed by mid and smaqll cap indexes, albeit the FTSE 250 and FTSE ...

UK stock markets recover from early losses to nudge modestly into positive territory with little real direction provided by mixed markets elsewhere across the globe. Europe's main indexes are largely higher, although not by much, while there were losses recorded across the pond overnight. The benchmark FTSE 100 makes very modest single-digit gains to trade around the 6,037 mark, with midcaps ...

London shares creep a fraction higher in early trade on Thursday as investors sigh with relief as inflation risks diminish. The market had feared an early interest rate hike but these worries seem to have been over-egged. The benchmark FTSE 100 stays roughly flat at 6,671, showing a very modest 6 points improvement, moves largely matched by both the midcaps FTSE 250 index and the wider market FTSE ...

Greece debt talks once again dominate market mood on Thursday, although investors are pushing London markets into modestly positive territory. Despite a fairly quiet day for corporate news the FTSE 100 index nudges around 15 points higher to 6,846, while midcaps make further gains too, the FTSE 250 up around 0.5% at 18,119. Royal Mail (RMG) falls 3.5% to 499.15p on news the government has sold ...

UK stocks slip back in early trade on Tuesday, losing earlier gains, as investors return to their desks to face a barrage of cautious economic data from the US. The benchmark FTSE 100 index eases back around 40 points, or 0.6%, dipping back below the 7,000 mark to 6,987. Oil and bank issues act as a key drag, although midcaps are so far managing to keep declines down, the FTSE 250 off 0.4% at ...