London stocks ended the week on the back foot, as weak US payroll figures and a fresh wave of tariffs announced by President Trump rattled global sentiment and fuelled rate cut speculation. The FTSE 100 index closed down 64.23 points, 0.7%, at 9,068.58. The FTSE 250 closed 263.49 points lower, 1.2%, at 21,699.34, and the AIM All-Share closed down 4.34 points, 0.6%, at 757.16. For the week, the...

Stocks continued to trade lower on Friday afternoon in London, Paris and Frankfurt, ahead of US unemployment and manufacturing purchasing managers' index data, as concerns regarding US tariffs lingered. The FTSE 100 index was down 64.49 points, 0.7%, at 9,068.32. The FTSE 250 was down 263.55 points, 1.2%, at 21,699.28, and the AIM All-Share was down 5.32 points, 0.7%, at 756.18. The Cboe UK...

Earnings back in the black Interim dividend raised 20% Tariffs mostly mitigated Aerospace engineering firm Melrose (MRO) posted a return to profit in the six months to June and increased its interim dividend by 20% thanks to strong demand in its end markets. The shares jumped as much as 40p or nearly 8% to 552p shortly after the open before settling up 28p or 5.5% at 540p. > More detailed...

Following on the heels of AIM's 30th anniversary last month, this week marks the 90th anniversary of the FT30 index (on 1 July, to be precise). Never heard of it, you say? Founded in 1935 by the Financial News, it was originally called the Financial News 30-Share Index before changing its name to the FT30 in 1945 after the newspaper merged with the Financial Times. The index is similar to the...

Stocks in Europe were mostly higher on Friday morning, with oil majors giving some ground as the oil price eased following US President Donald Trump's announcement to consider his options for two weeks regarding the conflict between Israel and Iran. The Office for National Statistics said borrowing surged to £17.7 billion last month, the second highest figure on record for May, surpassed only...

Three decades ago, the Alternative Investment Market ? or AIM for short ? was launched. In this article we take a look back at how it all started, what have been the highs and lows and where it might go from here. Is it still an attractive place for innovative growth companies ? described by the London Stock Exchange as 'the lifeblood of the global economy' ? to raise vital equity capital and...

Stocks in London opened mostly higher on Wednesday as investors await several US data releases, with the Federal Reserve expected to announce no change to interest rates. Meanwhile in the UK, consumer prices rose 0.2% on a monthly basis in May, slowing from 1.2% in April and in line with FXStreet-cited consensus. Annually, consumer price inflation came in at 3.4% against 3.5% on-year growth...

Markets around the world have reacted with palpable relief to two major decisions by the Trump administration. First, on 9 April, reciprocal tariffs (except on China) were delayed for 90 days ? which proved the catalyst for the third-largest daily gain for US stocks since the Second World War. Many observers pegged the U-turn on movements in government bond yields which revealed declining...

FTSE 100 down more than 3% at 7,763.65 Defensive and utilities stocks hold steady Entain and Taylor Wimpey 'winners' UK housebuilder Taylor Wimpey (TW.) and gambling firm Entain (ENT) bucked the trend by falling less than the blue-chip FTSE 100 index. Taylor Wimpey and other housebuilders were perhaps anticipating the possibility of the Bank of England cutting interest rates this year as a...

Melrose Industries (MRO) 523pMarket cap: £6.8 billionIt's not often you see a FTSE 100 company lose nearly 30% of its market value in just two days, but that's what happened earlier this month when aerospace and defence firm Melrose (MRO) published its preliminary 2024 results.It didn't matter that earnings were better than forecast, or that the firm issued upbeat growth forecasts for the...

Shares ended higher in London on Friday as the German government agreed a defence and infrastructure spending package, while the US Senate worked to avoid a government shutdown ahead of its midnight funding deadline.The FTSE 100 index closed up 89.77 points, 1.1%, at 8,632.33. The FTSE 250 ended up 307.02 points, 1.6%, at 19,995.59, and the AIM All-Share closed up 7.59 points, 1.1%, at...

The FTSE 100 lagged European peers on Thursday, after a perceived 'hawkish' rate cut by the European Central Bank drove the euro higher.Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell said there wasn't any bad news to cause a minor sell-off.'It's just one of those days where investors reassessed their portfolios given the uncertain economic and geopolitical backdrop,' he noted.The FTSE 100 index...

Blue chip stocks in London and Paris were lower at midday Thursday, but up a notch in Frankfurt amid hopes of big investments from the incoming German government.The European Central Bank 'is expected to cut rates having been given a freer hand as inflationary pressures have eased,' AJ Bell's Russ Mould noted.The FTSE 100 index was down 82.84 points, 1.0%, at 8,673.00. The FTSE 250 was down...

Shares jump 10% on deal newsBuyer paying just a 25% premiumShares had halved since listingSpin-offs are usually fertile ground for investors, but that hasn't been the case for shareholders who bought into automotive components and powder metallurgy group Dowlais (DWL) after its demerger from Melrose (MRO).Fortunately, holders have been offered respite of sorts in the shape of an agreed deal...

Full year guidance reiteratedOn target for £700m profit in 2025Substantial free cash flow expectedAerospace components maker Melrose Industries (MRO) defied the malaise in the sector caused by supply shortages after confirming full year- year profit expectations on increased demand for aftermarket parts and services.Investors welcomed the resilient performance by marking the shares up 7% to a...

European stocks were higher going into Friday afternoon, as investors focused on potential clues about future monetary policy from both sides of the Atlantic.The Jackson Hole meeting will see both Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and and Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey speak on Friday.In other news, energy bills are set to increase by almost £150 after Ofgem raised its price cap, in...

European stocks were in the green on Friday morning, as regulator Ofgem reported it will increase the energy price cap in Great Britain, pushing up average household bills by 9.5% from October.'Just when temperatures begin to plummet and nights draw in, households will be faced with the exact scenario they'd hoped was behind them,' warned AJ Bell's Danni Hewson.Meanwhile, eyes remained on the...

Automotive parts supplier hit by slowing EV volumesBuybacks no substitute for business growthStock drifts to around 60p, half its Melrose spin-out levelThere are a many reasons why global electric vehicles markets are in a slump ? still pricey compared to petrol engine versions, reduced, or axed government subsidies for buyers, renewed interest for hybrids, are some of them.The problem is, the...

Hot on the heels of the UK election and the float of Raspberry Pi (RPI) comes another highly-anticipated UK IPO (initial public offering), this time on AIM.Rosebank Industries (ROSE:AIM) placed 20 million shares at 250p last week raising £50 million, yet as it stands the company has no assets, revenue or profits ? instead it is a holding company set up to buy, improve and sell other...

French firm lowers forecastsBlames supply-chain issuesUK companies closely linkedUK aerospace and defence suppliers were knocked lower by a warning from Toulouse-based Airbus (AIR:EPA), which cut both its production forecast and its earnings outlook for this year due to continuing geopolitical and supply chain tensions.UK engineering companies such as Rolls-Royce (RR.) and Melrose (MRO),...