The FTSE 100 was lower on Monday at midday as the oil price declined despite high tensions between Iran and Israel, while the FTSE 250 was a tad higher.The FTSE 100 index was down 33.43 points, 0.4%, at 7,962.15. The FTSE 250 was up 12.21 points, 0.1%, at 19,733.45, and the AIM All-Share was down 4.01 points, 0.5%, at 751.90.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.5% at 795.86, the Cboe UK 250 was marginally d

London?s FTSE 100, the outperformer on Friday as investors fretted over a possible escalation in the Middle East, was the laggard on Monday in the wake of Iran?s strikes on Israel over the weekend, as the blue-chip index?s oil majors tracked crude prices lower.Large-cap benchmarks in Frankfurt and Paris, which fell on Friday, were on the up on Monday. Stocks in New York tumbled at the end of last

Positive momentum continuesRecord first quarter sales10% earnings upgrade impliedAffordable colour cosmetics supplier Warpaint London?s (W7L:AIM) stunning cycle of upgrades continues.The company, which supplies its wares to the likes of Tesco (TSCO), Boots and Superdrug, has raised its year-to-December 2024 outlook after experiencing continued rapid growth in the first quarter, sending shares in t

Stocks in London extended gains at midday as the Bank of England left interest rates unchanged, with no officials now deeming a rate rise necessary.Sterling was quoted at $1.2744 shortly after midday on Thursday, higher than $1.2717 at the London equities close on Wednesday. Before the decision, the pound was trading at $1.2753.The FTSE 100 index was up 113.17 points, 1.5%, at 7,850.55. The FTSE 2

In an up and down week US indices were a touch off their record levels although the end of the week took on a more positive hue thanks to comments from Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell. Powell suggested rate cuts were not too far away. Shares in IT outfit Hewlett Packard Enterprises (HPE:NYSE) surged on strong demand for the company's artificial intelligence focused servers. Excitement around

SCOTTISH ORIENTAL SMALLER COMPANIES TRUST (SST) £13.50Market cap: £324 millionDespite some stand-out individual performances in 2023, emerging markets remain under-owned and undervalued with heavyweight country China firmly out of favour with investors.One savvy way to benefit from a revival in sentiment towards the region?s corporate small fry is to buy Scottish Oriental Smaller Companies (SS

Stock prices in London were in the red at midday Friday, though StanChart rose, as buoyant mood in stocks following Nvidia?s earnings began to falter.At midday, the FTSE 100 index was down slightly, 1.05 points, at 7,683.44. The FTSE 250 was down 78.99 points, 0.4%, at 19,184.51, and the AIM All-Share was down 1.34 points, 0.2%, at 748.62.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.1% at 769.23, the Cboe UK 250 wa

Stock prices in London were mixed on Friday morning, as the FTSE 100 enjoyed a boost from Standard Chartered, following positive annual results.The FTSE 100 index opened up 5.43 points, 0.1%, at 7,689.92. The FTSE 250 was down 65.21 points, 0.3%, at 19,198.29, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.97 of a point, 0.1%, at 748.99.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.1% at 770.16, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.4% at 16,

First half profits fall 30%Full year guidance downgradedShares plunge to five-year lowTesting times continue for shareholders in Genus (GNS), the animal genetics specialist?s stock plunging 26% to a five-year low of £15.72 on a warning annual profits will disappoint due to low pork prices and weak bovine volumes in China denting demand for genetics services.Basingstoke-based Genus now expects adj

US stocks continued their journey skyward ahead of the Federal Reserve meeting on Wednesday night only to return to earth with a bump on Thursday on a combination of hawkish comments from the central bank and uninspiring tech earnings.While no-one expected interest rates to be cut from their current level of 5.25% to 5.5%, the monetary policy statement was less conciliatory than expected with Fed

Shares drift in after-market tradingMicrosoft now the world?s largest companyBeats consensus on both top and bottom linesMicrosoft (MSFT:NASDAQ) drifted about 1% lower once after-market trading closed. In the wake of fourth quarter 2023 (fiscal Q2, 2024) results, which beat consensus forecasts on top and bottom lines, is the market?s love affair over with Washington state?s most recognised corpora

Mixed start to the year knocks sharesFull year profit expected to be metSecond half weightingAnimal genetics specialist Genus (GNS) reiterated full year profit guidance at its annual general meeting on Wednesday but conceded that phasing is expected to be second half weighted after mixed trading in the period.Increased uncertainty of meeting market expectations saw the shares fall 3% to £20.47, m

Stock prices in London opened in the green on Monday, ahead of a US government funding deadline and key inflation data, as insurer Phoenix rose after upgrading its cash generation targets.The FTSE 100 index opened up 48.40 points, 0.7%, at 7,408.95. The FTSE 250 was up 27.17 points, 0.2%, at 17,880.26, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.1 of a point at 701.02.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.7% at 739.62, t

Investor concerns on the US interest rates outlook hurt stocks in Europe on Friday, although investors in New York still bought despite recent hawkish comments from US central bankers.Among London shares, Diageo was by far and away the worst FTSE 100 performer. There was some slight strength in oil stocks, as Crude prices recovered, while defence firms also climbed with contract-winning Babcock In

Stock prices in London were down at midday Wednesday, after bad news for the UK's manufacturing sector and ahead of the US Fed's interest rate decision.The FTSE 100 index was down 8.98 points, 0.1%, at 7,312.74. The FTSE 250 was down 83.56 points, 0.5%, at 16,999.49, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.51 of a point, 0.1%, at 679.34.The Cboe UK 100 was down slightly at 729.70 and the Cboe UK 250 was

Occasionally, funds can become victims of their own success, becoming so popular and attracting such inflows that they become harder to manage and their size begins to impact on the investment process and performance.One way asset management companies seek to dampen down investor demand in such instances is to 'soft close' such a collective, which means the fund is technically still open for sales

Shareholders in leading global animal genetics specialist Genus (GNS) have been through a rough couple of years with the shares losing just under two-thirds of their value.The fall can be attributed to a big derating in the shares which has seen the forward PE (price to earnings) ratio fall from 53 times to 24 times today, and huge swings in Chinese pig prices which have dented near-term demand fo

Investors seeking to position portfolios for a rally in small and mid cap stocks should buy BlackRock Throgmorton Trust (THRG), a fund with a strong long-run performance record trading at a 7.2% discount to net asset value (NAV), wider than the 4.7% 12-month average.The sell-off in quality growth stocks caused by rising interest rates has been a headwind for the portfolio, but Shares sees manager

The UK banks' first-half reporting season kicks off with Lloyds (LLOY) on 26 July.The industry has been under fire for being much slower to pass on the benefit of higher rates to savers than it has been to pass on higher borrowing costs to mortgage-holders and other borrowers.The Financial Conduct Authority called in the boss of Lloyds as well as several other banks and building societies to press

Turnaround strategy starting to bear fruitFull year profits smash forecastsM&S to reinstate dividends at the interim resultsBritish retail bellwether Marks & Spencer's (MKS) shares surged 11.5% to a one-year high of 182.5p today after the foods-to-fashion seller reported forecast-beating full-year profits, prompting another round of earnings upgrades from analysts.Besides a much better-than-expect