Stocks in London continued to rally during midday trade on Thursday, as the Bank of England left interest rates unchanged, matching Wednesday?s move from the US Federal Reserve.Sterling was quoted at $1.2706 shortly after midday on Thursday, higher than $1.2525 at the London equities close on Wednesday. Before the decision, the pound was trading at $1.2667.The FTSE 100 index was up 137.20 points,

Bunzl raises profit target againCapita and Serco orders growDriver the day?s star turnOn a good day for markets in general, UK business services firms were feeling the love after posting positive trading updates.Half a dozen firms, from FTSE 100 distributor Bunzl (BNZL) to FTSE 250 outsourcer Serco (SRP) and staffing firm SThree (STEM) all the way down to tiddlers Capita (CPI), Driver (DRV) and RM

Stock prices in London, Paris and Frankfurt jumped on Thursday morning, as the US Federal Reserve signalled interest rate cuts for 2024.Still to come on Thursday, the Bank of England and European Central Bank will announce their own interest rate decisions.The FTSE 100 index opened up 155.54 points, 2.1%, at 7,703.98. The FTSE 250 was up 598.88 points, 3.2%, at 19,294.64, and the AIM All-Share was

Imagine you've been given the choice of investing in three companies. You can choose one of two batches with the intention of holding them for at least five years.The first batch features a rat catcher, a provider of emergency telephones for lifts and a trucking company carrying small loads across the US. Sounds boring, right?The second batch features an American cruise line operator. You also get

Today's era of higher interest rates means shares face competition for investors' hard-earned savings money from the interest on cash and the coupons paid out by bonds. However, the purchasing power of cash is being eroded by inflation, while the coupons investors clip from bonds can only ever be fixed.'The beauty of equities and equity income is the growth,' says Troy Asset Management's Blake Hut

- Another year of strong revenue growth in 2022- Dividend raised by 10% in line with earnings- Shares top FTSE 100 early onSpecialist distribution group Bunzl (BNZL) posted strong revenue growth in the 12 months to December and pleased investors with its 30th consecutive increase in annual dividends.The shares initially jumped to the top of the FTSE 100 leader board with a gain of 4% to £31.39 be

- Firm passing on 'significant' price hikes- Recovery in base business offsetting lower Covid sales- Full year operating margin estimate raisedGlobal distribution group Bunzl (BNZL) delivered a robust first half trading update and predicted its full year operating margin would be 'only slightly lower' than last year, which was boosted by Covid-related sales.Shares in the FTSE 100 firm initially sl

It is one thing for analysts to forecast which stocks and sectors will do well in a rising-rate or inflationary environment, but when it actually comes to pass it's always fascinating to see what works in practice.Judging by the list of stocks making 12-month highs over the past week, those who favoured real assets were on the money.Standing tall are 3i Infrastructure (3IN), AEW UK REIT (AEWU), GC

Specialist international distributer Bunzl (BNZL) said a recovery in its core business and contributions from acquisitions more than offset expected declines in Covid-19 related sales.The company increased guidance saying it now expected 'moderate' growth in revenues in 2022 and an increased operating margin compared with historical levels.The results and better guidance were well received by inve

The FTSE 100 finished 0.81% in the green at 7,551.72 points on Wednesday, building on Tuesday's rally despite US CPI inflation hitting 7% in December, a 40-year high.With markets already pricing in rate rises, investors took the US inflation print in their stride, though it would have been a different story if the figure had strayed above the 7% most analysts had been expecting.Global equities wer

The FTSE 100 finished the day on a down note, falling 48 points, or 0.7%, to 7,170.75 as consumer prices increased 5.1% in November, the highest level in more than a decade, ahead of a Bank of England meeting.'At 5.1% it's uncomfortably above most analyst's expectations and reaches the level the Bank of England had predicted for next spring,' said AJ Bell analyst Danni Hewson.But few experts predi

Major UK stocks remain in the red at lunchtime on Wednesday as investors digest the fastest growth in the cost of living in Britain since 2008. 'At 5.1% it's uncomfortably above most analyst's expectations and reaches the level the Bank of England had predicted for next spring,' said AJ Bell analyst Danni Hewson.However, it seems unlikely the Bank will move on rates tomorrow as the UK looks ahead

UK stocks edged lower on Wednesday after the latest UK inflation reading came in higher than expected, stoking concerns that interest rates might rise, with the FTSE 100 off 0.19% at 7,205.20 early on.The UK consumer price index rose by 5.1% in November, above expectations for a 4.8% increase and marking the highest annual increase in a decade, putting renewed pressure on the Bank of England to ta

FTSE 100 falls accelerated through the afternoon session despite a firm start on Wall Street, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq trading higher. Reports that the US and China could release some of their strategic oil reserves appear to have taken their toll, and despite a recovery in the price of Brent crude, up 0.7% at $80.87 a barrel, both BP (BP.) and Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) posted near 2% declines t

The FTSE 100 remains entrenched in the red at lunchtime on Thursday as investors were spooked by reports that the US and China could release some of their strategic oil reserves.West Texas Intermediate is off 0.45% while Brent crude fell 0.32% to $80.02 a barrel. These worries saw both BP (BP.) and Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) among the biggest FTSE 100 fallers, off around 2% a piece at 335.95p and £

The FTSE 100 slipped lower on Thursday, as miners declined and investors digested news Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) could be hit with an exit tax in the Netherlands ahead of its move to relocating its headquarters to the UK.Early on, the blue chip benchmark traded 0.22% lower at 7,275.32 points, not helped by rising inflation as this raised the likelihood of a pre-Christmas rate rise, thereby boosting

Support services firm Essentra (ESNT) is on the cusp of a transformation which could address the discounted valuation associated with its current conglomerate structure. This should also address longstanding environmental, social and governance concerns and free up management to focus on its most profitable division.Investors should buy now to benefit from these potential catalysts, with the share

London's FTSE 100 finished Tuesday's trading session 0.76% higher at a fresh 20-month high of 7,277.62 points as UK investors reacted to strong corporate results and a recent decline in Covid cases boosted travel and services sector stocks.Meanwhile, US and European markets rose as excitement around the technology sector grew ahead of earnings from the likes of Microsoft, Google-owner Alphabet and

London's FTSE 100 gained 0.6% to trade at 7,267.11 at midday, a new post-pandemic high as investors reacted to a record close on Wall Street overnight and strong corporate results.Equity markets have adopted a more optimistic tone with the Dow Jones Industrial and S&P 500 closing at record highs on Monday.The NASDAQ composite index also performed strongly driven by gains in PayPal and Tesla.WHITBR