The latest Investing Matters Podcast episode featuring financial educator and author Jared Dillian has been released. Listen here.

Less Ads, More Data, More Tools Register for FREE

Pin to quick picksBP Share News (BP.)

Share Price Information for BP (BP.)

London Stock Exchange
Share Price is delayed by 15 minutes
Get Live Data
Share Price: 503.80
Bid: 503.80
Ask: 503.90
Change: 1.50 (0.30%)
Spread: 0.10 (0.02%)
Open: 504.00
High: 506.20
Low: 503.30
Prev. Close: 502.30
BP. Live PriceLast checked at -

Watchlists are a member only feature

Login to your account

Alerts are a premium feature

Login to your account

LONDON MARKET CLOSE: Refueled Trade War Concerns Send Stocks Lower

Wed, 23rd May 2018 17:35

LONDON (Alliance News) - Stocks in London ended lower on Wednesday retreating from record highs as concerns of a trade war between the US and China were rekindled. The FTSE 100 index closed down 1.1%, or 89.01 points at 7,788.44. The FTSE 250 ended down 0.9%, or 166.54 points, at 20,004.90, and the AIM All-Share closed down 0.6%, or 6.97 points, at 1,088.18.The Cboe UK 100 ended down 1.4% at 13,207.16, the Cboe UK 250 closed down 0.9% at 19,251.42, and the Cboe UK Small Companies ended down 0.6% at 12,048.06.In Paris the CAC 40 ended down 1.3%, while the DAX 30 in Frankfurt ended down 1.5%. Stock markets across the globe were lower following comments from US President Donald Trump, who deemed the ongoing trade talks with China "not satisfactory" thus far. "The atmosphere on equities this afternoon is gloomy, to say the least. The certainties of earlier in the week have ebbed away, and what's worse is that new worries have arrived to concern investors. Signs of détente between the US and China have decreased, reviving the great trade war fear," said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.On the London Stock Exchange, Marks & Spencer ended as the best blue chip performer up 5.0% despite the UK high street stalwart reporting a slump in annual profit against the backdrop of an aggressive restructuring drive. Revenue rose 0.7% to GBP10.70 billion for the year to March 31, up from GBP10.62 billion last year, but pretax profit dropped 62% to GBP66.8 million from GBP176.4 million."There is a short squeeze happening today in M&S, driven by talk of cost cuts and reductions in capital expendiure, but to be clear, the numbers weren't good, with food showing negative like-for-likes and margins slipping. It is also going to close some clothing stores to re-focus its efforts online," said Mark Swain, manager of the Smith & Williamson Enterprise fund."It is not unusual for short squeezes to occur in the first of the year as the market mistakenly gives companies the benefit of the doubt - although hope fades to reality in the second half of the year as the market begins to realise that analysts' expectations are overly optimistic," Swain added. Conversely, heavyweight commodity stocks were weighing large cap index amid lower oil prices as well as trade war fears.Anglo American closed won 5.0%, Antofagasta, down 2.6%, Rio Tinto, down 2.5% and BHP Billiton down 2.2%. Oil majors Royal Dutch Shell 'A' closed down 3.0%, Shell 'B' down 2.6% and BP down 2.1%.Energy stocks across the globe came under pressure as oil prices fell on speculation that the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries may raise oil output as soon as June.Brent oil was quoted at USD79.44 a barrel at the London equities close, down from USD80.18 at the close Tuesday.Gold was flat quoted at USD1,291.59 an ounce at the London equities close against USD1,292.63 late Tuesday.In the FTSE 250, Softcat ended as the best performer up 7.7% after the IT infrastructure firm said it expects to report annual results above expectations following a strong third quarter. The group said it continued to trade well across all segments during the quarter ended April 30, with market conditions and customer demand both remaining strong. As a result, Softcat said it is confident in delivering full-year results ahead of expectations.At the other end of the midcaps, Dairy Crest ended as the worst performer down 8.8% after the dairy products maker said it completed a fundraising conducted in order to expand its cheese unit.Dairy Crest said it would place up to 14.1 million shares at a price of 495.00 pence each, representing about 10% of its currently issued shares. Later, the company confirmed it had raised the intended GBP70 million in gross proceeds at the planned price and share volume.The pound was down quoted at USD1.3349 at the London equities close, compared to USD1.3437 at the same time on Tuesday, following disappointing UK inflation data - prompting fears of a delayed interest rate hike from the Bank of England. Data from the Office for National Statistics showed that UK inflation slowed in April. Consumer prices climbed 2.4% year-on-year in April, slightly slower than the 2.5% increase seen in March. The rate was expected to remain at 2.5%.The euro was a touch lower at USD1.1703 at the European equities close, against USD1.1785 the prior day.In economic news on the continent, eurozone private sector grew at the weakest pace in one-and-a-half years in May with the rate of expansion slowing for the fourth consecutive month, flash survey data from IHS Markit showed.The composite output index dropped to an 18-month low of 54.1 in May from 55.1 in April. The score was forecast to remain unchanged at 55.1. Nonetheless, a reading above 50 indicates growth.Growth deteriorated in both services and manufacturing, down to 18- and 16-month lows, respectively.

The services Purchasing Managers' Index came in at 53.9, while the score was expected to remain at 54.7. The manufacturing PMI slid more-than-expected to 55.5 from 56.2 in April. Economists had forecast manufacturing PMI to drop to 56.1."Thanks to recent soft patch in data, market participants have pushed back their expectations about the timing of policy tightening in the UK and Eurozone, and as a result the pound and euro have both suffered," said Forex.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada.Stocks in New York were lower at the London equities close. The DJIA was down 0.5%, the S&P 500 index down 0.4% and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.3%.Markets in the US continue to react to comments from President Donald Trump expressing some dissatisfaction with trade talks with China."Our trade deal with China is moving along nicely, but in the end we will probably have to use a different structure in that this will be too hard to get done and to verify results after completion," Trump said in a post on Twitter.On the US economic front, the Commerce Department released a report showing a pullback in new home sales in the month of April.The report said new home sales fell by 1.5% to an annual rate of 662,000 in April after jumping by 2% to a revised rate of 672,000 in March.In corporate news, broadcaster Comcast Corp confirmed it is in the advanced stages of preparing an offer for the entertainment and broadcast businesses that Twenty-First Century Fox has agreed to sell to Walt Disney Co. This does not include the Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network, Fox Broadcasting Co assets.This would imply it would include Fox's stake in UK pay television service Sky.Comcast, which owns NBCUniversal, said it made the announcement in view of the recent filings with the US Securities & Exchange Commission by Disney and Fox in preparation for their upcoming shareholder meetings to consider the acquisition of Fox assets by Disney.The UK government said Monday it does not intend to refer GBP22 billion bid for Sky by Comcast Corp to competition authorities on public interest grounds.Investors are also looking ahead to the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting at 1900 BST. The minutes may shed additional light on the outlook for interest rates.The economic events calendar on Thursday has Germany GDP readings at 0700 BST, UK retail sales figures at 0930 BST and US initial jobless claims data at 1330 BST. In addition, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney is scheduled to speak at the 2018 Bank of England Markets Forum at 0900 BST. The UK corporate calendar has full year results from water company United Utilities, private hospital group Mediclinic International, home phone and broadband provider TalkTalk Telecom Group. There are also trading statements from DIY retailer Kingfisher and testing and inspection company Intertek.

The manufacturing PMI slid more-than-expected to 55.5 from 56.2 in April. Economists had forecast the index to drop to 56.1.

More News
12 Apr 2024 11:47

Europe's main energy stocks index hits highest since 2008

April 12 (Reuters) - The main European energy stocks index hit its highest level since 2008 as higher oil prices, geopolitical risks, and global economic uncertainty drew in investors on Friday.

Read more
12 Apr 2024 11:37

TOP NEWS: BP shares rise after reports Adnoc had pondered takeover

(Alliance News) - Shares in BP jumped on Friday after reports that the state-owned, United Arab Emirates oil company was considering, but had ruled out, a bid for the London-based oil major.

Read more
12 Apr 2024 08:58

LONDON MARKET OPEN: Stocks get boost thanks to growth in UK economy

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Friday, thanks to new data suggesting the UK economy is out of recession.

Read more
12 Apr 2024 07:56

UAE's ADNOC said to have recently considered BP takeover

(Sharecast News) - The United Arab Emirates' state-owned oil company recently considered buying BP but the deliberations did not progress beyond preliminary discussions, according to a report.

Read more
11 Apr 2024 14:41

Senegal says oil, gas and mine contracts will be reworked if needed

DAKAR, April 11 (Reuters) - Senegal's new Energy and Mines Minister said on Thursday the government would renegotiate oil, gas and mining contracts if necessary once a promised audit is completed.

Read more
10 Apr 2024 08:41

Johnson Matthey and BP win deal for US sustainable aviation fuel plant

(Alliance News) - Johnson Matthey PLC and BP PLC on Wednesday said their technology offering has been selected for use in a sustainable aviation fuel plant being built in the US state of Louisiana.

Read more
10 Apr 2024 07:47

LONDON BRIEFING: Stocks called up ahead of US inflation data

(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are called to open higher, as investors shake off nerves ahead of a key US inflation reading.

Read more
9 Apr 2024 17:26

Slide in defence stocks knocks down Europe's STOXX 600

BP gains on higher quarterly upstream energy output forecast

*

Read more
9 Apr 2024 17:13

FTSE 100 ends down as defence stocks offset commodity gains

Easter food spending lifts UK retail sales in March

*

Read more
9 Apr 2024 16:53

LONDON MARKET CLOSE: Stocks struggle in nervy trade before US data

(Alliance News) - European equities closed lower on Tuesday, with sentiment downbeat ahead of Wednesday's US inflation reading, though impetus could be found in gold, which hit another record high.

Read more
9 Apr 2024 15:12

London close: Stocks slip ahead of ECB, US inflation print

(Sharecast News) - London markets closed lower on Tuesday, as investors braced for a key US inflation reading as well as a policy announcement from the European Central Bank later in the week.

Read more
9 Apr 2024 12:00

LONDON MARKET MIDDAY: FTSE 100 treads water despite boost from miners

(Alliance News) - Equities in London lacked impetus heading into Tuesday, as investors moved with caution ahead of a US inflation print on Wednesday and the European Central Bank's interest rate decision a day later.

Read more
9 Apr 2024 10:21

PRESS: Shell could make London exit if value gap to US does not close

(Alliance News) - Shell PLC fired a warning shot to that it could be prepared to move its listing to the US in a fresh blow to London's financial centre.

Read more
9 Apr 2024 08:53

TOP NEWS: BP predicts upstream production will rise in first quarter

(Alliance News) - BP PLC on Tuesday said it expects first quarter upstream production to be higher than the previous three month period but cautioned lower prices would hurt performance elsewhere.

Read more
9 Apr 2024 08:44

LONDON MARKET OPEN: Stocks shaky ahead of US CPI data, ECB decision

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened mostly lower on Tuesday, as investors look ahead to a key inflation reading from the US, as well as the latest interest rate decision from the European Central Bank.

Read more

Login to your account

Don't have an account? Click here to register.

Quickpicks are a member only feature

Login to your account

Don't have an account? Click here to register.