The owner of British Airways is considering setting up a low-cost short-haul operation that would go into direct competition with Ryanair (RYA) and EasyJet (EZJ) and could trigger a ticket price war. Airline conglomerate International Consolidated Airlines (IAG), which owns British Airways, is investigating plans that would shift its current short-haul flights into a new low-cost subsidiary ...

There are lots of good reasons why investors should have allocations to the FTSE 250, London’s high-flying index oriented to mid caps which provides a purer play on the domestic UK economy than the exporter-heavy FTSE 100. The FTSE 250 captures those growth stocks that have come up from the small cap ranks and therefore had a chance to establish themselves. And crucially, it can catch these ...

The recent UK banks reporting season was characterised by consensus beating results and the resumption of dividends. However the sectors’ earnings were flattered by larger than expected net provision releases. These provisions related to money put aside to cover potential bad debts during the pandemic, and it has been a recurrent feature throughout the banks reporting season. Many banks ...

A positive US jobs report provided markets and banking stocks with a boost, driving the S&P 500 to a record high across the pond. However, London’s FTSE 100 was subdued on Friday, despite gains for NatWest (NWG), Lloyds (LLOY), Barclays (BARC) and HSBC (HSBA). The blue chip benchmark finished the session broadly flat at 7,122.95 points, which was enough to ensure its best weekly ...

UK stocks began August on the front foot, lifted by further UK merger and acquisition activity in mid-caps. Oil and Gold prices were lower with Brent Crude down 0.9% to $74.7 per barrel and Gold was 0.4% down at $1,807 per ounce. At the close the FTSE 100 index of leading shares was up 50 points or 0.7% at 7,082 points led by aerospace and retail stocks. The mid-cap FTSE 250 index was up ...

UK stocks started the month on the front foot, lifted by strong gains in Asia after China signaled support for the economy and further UK merger and acquisition activity. China’s SE Composite index gained close to 2% reversing some of last week’s heavy losses while Japan’s Nikkei 225 also added 2%. Oil and Gold prices were lower with Brent Crude down 0.9% to $74.7 per barrel and Gold ...

Shares in HSBC (HSBA) only traded 1% higher despite it reporting first-half results ahead of market expectations. The earnings beat was helped by a larger than expected net provision release of £0.7 billion that flattered the group’s results. This provision related to money put aside to cover potential bad debts during the pandemic, and it has been a recurrent feature of all the UK banks ...

UK stocks opened on the front foot on Monday boosted by strong gains in Asia after China signaled support for the economy and further UK merger and acquisition activity. China’s SE Composite index gained close to 2% reversing some of last week’s heavy losses while Japan’s Nikkei 225 also added 2%. Oil and Gold prices were lower with Brent Crude down 0.9% to $74.7 per barrel and Gold ...

The FTSE 100 struggled for direction on Tuesday as inflation levels continued to accelerate in the US, with the blue chip benchmark ending the session pretty much flat at 7,124.72 points. By 4.30pm UK time the S&P 500 index in the US was up 0.1% at 4,390.52. The CPI print of 0.9% for June was very much stronger than expectations of a 0.5% advance, leaving the Federal Reserve’s repeated ...

London’s FTSE 100 was broadly flat by midday at 7.128.43 points as initial momentum in the UK banking sector, after the Bank of England lifted dividend restrictions on the sector’s heavyweights, began to wane and worries over rising coronavirus infections kept gains in check. By lunchtime, NatWest (NATW) was off 0.4% at 206p, with Barclays (BARC) flat at 172.7p, although HSBC (HSBA) and ...

UK banks gave leading stocks a push higher in early trade on Tuesday afternoon the Bank of England lifted dividend restrictions on the sector’s heavyweights but worries over rising coronavirus infections kept gains in check. At 9am, the benchmark FTSE 100 was around 0.3% at 7,174.34, with NatWest (NATW) topping the leaderboard with gains just shy of 2% to 210.4p. HSBC (HSBA), Lloyds ...

London’s FTSE 100 finished Friday’s trading session broadly flat, off a mere 0.03% at 7,123.27 points, despite a stronger than expected jobs report in the US which confirmed that the world’s biggest economy continues to heal at a steady clip. The FTSE 250 closed 0.6% to the good at 22,747 points. AJ Bell financial analyst Danni Hewson said the slightly less celebratory mood in London ...

London’s FTSE 100 was up 0.23% at 7,141.32 by noon on Friday, the blue chip benchmark nudging higher with miners and pharmaceutical stocks leading the way, although traders keeping their powder dry ahead of the latest US employment data. Yet concerns over a recent jump in coronavirus infections outweighed reopening optimism and kept the index on course for a muted weekly ...

The UK’s leading shares had made decent gains after a slow start in relatively quiet trading on Friday with traders keeping their powder dry ahead of the latest US employment data. But concerns over a recent jump in coronavirus infections outweighed reopening optimism and kept the index on course for a muted weekly showing. At 9am, the benchmark FTSE 100 had moved 0.46% higher to 7,158.11 ...

The UK’s major shares opened on the up on Friday led by gains in heavyweight banking and commodity stocks, while investors awaited key US inflation data that has kept them on edge this week. The benchmark FTSE 100 rallied 0.3% in early deals to 7,041.55, gains that didn’t quite match those seen on Asian markets overnight as they welcomed the strong economic recovery in the US. Japan’s ...

Shares in high-street lender NatWest Group (NWG) bucked the positive trend set by rivals HSBC (HSBA) and Lloyds (LLOY) by dropping 4% to 195.5p, making them the worst performers on the FSTE 100, despite the bank reporting better than expected first quarter earnings. First quarter operating pre-tax profits were £946 million, well ahead of both last year’s £519 million and the consensus of ...

Shares in the UK’s largest mortgage lender Lloyds Bank (LLOY) rose 4.4% to 45.5p after the bank posted first quarter pre-tax earnings well ahead of market expectations. The bank also raised full year profitability guidance, prompting analysts to revisit their spreadsheets. Underlying pre-tax profits for the group were £2.07 billion against consensus forecasts of just over £1 billion, helped ...

Shares in banking giant HSBC (HSBA) edged 0.7% higher to 425p despite first quarter earnings which were materially ahead of expectations, as investors focused instead on the lack of certainty over full year revenue growth and the company’s decision to eschew quarterly dividends. EARNINGS FLATTERED Reported pre-tax profits for the first three months were $5.8 billion, an increase of 79% on ...

UK stocks eked out modest gains in a subdued start to trading on Tuesday as various mining stocks created a headwind and investors digested a mixed batch of earnings releases, including positive updates from BP (BP.) and HSBC (HSBA) and disappointing ones from Whitbread (WTB) and Aveva (AVV). By 8.20 am, the FTSE 100 traded a mere 0.1% higher at 6,970.55 points while the FTSE 250 was down ...

With the major UK banks due to report their first quarter results in the next couple of weeks, we believe the rally in the sector which began last autumn has staying power based on valuation grounds. However, this is only a sector to trade short-term and we would be wary of brokers pushing an overly bullish narrative. WHAT TO EXPECT The reporting season starts with HSBC (HSBA) on 27 ...