Cancer drug gets positive readoutPotential for personalised medicinesModerna has over 45 drugs in developmentUS biotechnology firm Moderna (MRNA:NASDAQ) was the top performer in the S&P 500 on Tuesday (9 April) jumping as much as 10% after its personalised cancer vaccine showed positive results in an early stage trial.The shares closed 6% higher at $11.60, a new three month high, but are down 30%

Equities in London went into Wednesday afternoon in largely negative territory, though peers in Europe were in the green and equities in New York are called higher.Nonetheless, there was still some trepidation in the air ahead of a US inflation reading on Friday.Some of the FTSE 100?s heavyweights weighed on the index. Shell and BP fell 1.3% and 1.5% as Brent prices fell. HSBC lost 1.7% after Barc

London?s FTSE 100 edged lower after the opening bell on Wednesday, as investors moved with trepidation as eyes turn to a US inflation reading due later in the week.The FTSE 100 index opened down 13.02 points, 0.2%, at 7,917.94. The FTSE 250 was down 23.35 points, 0.1%, at 19,754.29, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.27 of a point at 739.79.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.2% at 791.57, the Cboe UK 250 was

Stock markets have been making new all-time highs in the US, Europe and Japan and investors are asking whether they are witnessing a new global bull market for stocks which began in November 2023.Momentum is a powerful factor in stock markets. Prices tend to trend in the same direction which mean buying winners and selling losers can be a profitable strategy.It is not only about price but also ear

A lot was riding on Nvidia?s (NVDA:NASDAQ) latest quarterly update with the strong run for the shares leaving little margin for error. However, it delivered and the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average reached new record highs. The big loser this week was Palo Alto Networks (PANW:NASDAQ) which endured a major slump in its share price after revealing softer client spending and steep promotions

Stock prices in London inched up on Monday as wider European markets lacked direction while US markets were closed for George Washington?s birthday.The FTSE 100 index closed up 16.79 points, 0.2%, at 7,728.50. The FTSE 250 ended up 24.97 points, 0.1%, at 19,216.90, and the AIM All-Share closed up 2.45 points, 0.3%, at 756.33.The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.3% at 773.62, the Cboe UK 250 closed up 0.2% a

Stock prices in London had little direction on Wednesday morning, ahead of crucial interest rate decisions by the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England.The FTSE 100 index opened up 2.76 points at 7,669.07. The FTSE 250 was down 11.48 points at 19,338.02, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.19 of a points at 754.70.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.1% at 765.96, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.1% at 16,798.2

In a slightly choppy week for Wall Street, as December?s inflation reading came in ahead of expectations at 3.4%, US stocks were ultimately dragged higher by the big tech firms which powered the markets in 2023.Positive comments from Nvidia (NVDA:NASDAQ) chief financial officer Collette Kress and news of three new graphics chips helped propel the company to double-digit gains for the week.Cyber se

London?s FTSE 100 made a tepid start to 2024, with underwhelming manufacturing data from the UK and eurozone doing little to lift sentiment.Equities in New York are called to open lower ahead of a key week for the US interest rate outlook. The latest Federal Reserve meeting minutes are released on Wednesday, before the official US jobs report on Friday.The FTSE 100 index was down 29.34 points, 0.4

Stocks in London mostly advanced on Tuesday as the New Year got underway, with investors digesting the latest manufacturing PMIs from major economies.The FTSE 100 index opened up 21.88, 0.3%, at 7,755.12. The FTSE 250 was down 12.20 points, 0.1%, at 19,677.43, and the AIM All-Share was 1.76 points, 0.2%, at 765.08.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.2% at 774.07, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.1% at 17,184.40, and

Deal for novel respiratory vaccine-makerPrice represents a 91% premiumAdds to expertise in respiratory syncytial virusGlobal biopharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca (AZN) has agreed to purchase Nasdaq-listed vaccine maker Icosavax (ICVZ:NASDAQ) for up to $1.1 billion in cash.The proposed transaction is designed to strengthen AstraZeneca?s Vaccines and Immune Therapies late-stage pipeline and build on

Investors in London bought at the open on Tuesday, reacting to the UK unemployment rate remaining unchanged and looking ahead to US inflation this afternoon.The FTSE 100 index opened up 33.30 points, 0.4%, at 7,578.19. The FTSE 250 was up 55.14 points, 0.3%, at 18,805.53, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.20 points, 0.2%, at 726.93.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.4% at 756.55, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.4% at

When debating what kind of portfolio is going to be best suited to an environment of 'higher-for-longer' interest rates, looking at past periods of high rates provides a partial guide.In the UK interest rates were high and stayed high pretty much from the start of the 1960s all the way through to 1990 and during that period not only were rates in double digits but so was inflation. The difference

European stocks went into Wednesday's US central bank decision on the up, with eyes on how equities in New York will respond to whatever the Federal Reserve has in store.Retailer Next flourished after raising profit guidance once again, but Aston Martin Lagonda went into reverse after cutting sales forecasts for its DB12 sports car.The FTSE 100 index closed up 20.71 points, 0.3%, at 7,342.43. The

Q3 sales and profit beat expectationsFull-year guidance increasedPositive longer-term outlookThe latest results from pharmaceutical firm GSK (GSK) have yielded yet another increase in full-year guidance after third-quarter sales and earnings beat market forecasts.The shares responded positively, rising 1.4% to £14.78, taking the year's gain to 2% compared with a 7% loss for the FTSE 100 index.Chi

GSK agrees £2.5 billion China dealFurther collaboration expected Global shingles vaccine sales to double by 2026Pharmaceutical giant GSK (GSK) has announced an exclusive strategic partnership with China's largest vaccine company Chongqing Zhifei Biological Products to co-promote its shingles vaccine Shingrix.Shares in the UK drug maker traded 1.5% higher to £15.18 in early trading, closing-in on

According to data from the AIC, the average investment trust discount to net asset value has widened from 12.2% at the end of 2022 to 14.5% as of 8 September 2023, while sector averages have generally widened. The exception is private equity, which narrowed from 25.1% to 4.5%, skewed by 3i's (III) dramatic swing from discount to premium.While this presents an opportunity to buy into parts of the m

THIS IS AN ADVERTISING PROMOTIONCompanies in emerging markets (EM) are at record cheap valuations, their lowest versus developed markets since 20021. While this may be sufficient to convince some investors of the buying opportunity, Chris Tennant, co-manager of Fidelity Emerging Markets Ltd, believes these facts don't paint the full picture. Here, he outlines five key themes that he believes make

Investors often fall into two camps. Some look to build wealth for the long term, while others want to protect wealth they have already accumulated, and this latter objective is what capital preservation funds are primarily designed for.There are three main investment trusts in the capital preservation space, namely Capital Gearing Trust (CGT), Ruffer Investment Company (RICA) and Personal Assets

With so much macroeconomic uncertainty, the recent mergers and acquisitions spree has lost momentum apart from one sector.Big pharmaceutical firms are awash with cash, yet patent cliffs (expiration of patent protection) present challenges which can be partially fixed by buying smaller biotech firms with products almost ready to go to market.International Biotechnology Trust's (IBT) Ailsa Craig and