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(Alliance News) - A robust session for London stocks emerged from a tepid start on Tuesday, with tech names back in favour even as recovery plays got a boost.
The FTSE 100 index was up 58.07 points, or 0.9%, at 6,777.20 on Tuesday. The mid-cap FTSE 250 index was up 204.03 points, or 1.0%, at 21,414.25. The AIM All-Share index was up 1.2% at 1,177.40.
The Cboe UK 100 index was up 0.7% at 675.58. The Cboe 250 was up 1.1% at 19,130.36, and the Cboe Small Companies up 0.8% at 13,730.90.
In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.4% while the DAX 30 in Frankfurt was up 0.4% Tuesday afternoon.
Though the day started slow, the mood picked up as Tuesday's morning session progressed, with riskier currencies on the front foot versus the dollar and US stock index futures pointing to a bright start.
Sterling was quoted at USD1.3882 on Tuesday at midday, higher than USD1.3810 at the London equities close on Monday. The euro traded at USD1.1991 on Tuesday, firm on USD1.1862 late Monday. Against the yen, the dollar fell to JPY108.68 versus JPY108.82.
Brent oil was trading at USD69.08 a barrel, up on USD68.55 late Monday.
"Nasdaq futures have roared ahead in an early bid to make up some lost ground after their hefty pullback since the middle of February. The firesale in many big tech names has been driven by fears of how higher yields will damage the attractiveness of these high flyers, and the improved prospects for stocks that will benefit from reopening economies, but with many [tech stocks] now much cheaper (compared to where they were) some will be eyeing up the sector," commented Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG.
Further optimism over the economic outlook came from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation & Development on Tuesday. After the world economy collapsed during the onset of the pandemic last year, in 2021 it is forecast to grow by 5.6%, the organization said. That is an increase of 1.4 percentage points compared to its last forecast, in December.
Next year, the OECD expects the world economy to grow by 4%, it said during the presentation of its report.
Last year, the world economy contracted by 3.4%, less than previously thought, said the OECD, an intergovernmental organization of developed economies that focuses on economic policy.
In New York on Tuesday, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was pointed up 2.2%, after a 2.4% slide on Monday. The Dow Jones was called up 0.6% and the S&P 500 up 1.1%.
Shares iPhone maker Apple were trading 2.8% higher pre-market, after a 4.2% slide on Monday, while luxury electric car maker Tesla was trading 5.1% higher ahead of the bell after a 5.8% fall and Netflix shares traded up 2.6% after Monday's 4.5% fall.
In London, Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust reversed morning losses to trade 3.7% higher at midday. Scottish Mortgage holds investments in tech firms such as Amazon.com and Tesla.
IG's Beauchamp added: "It is not time to write off the value section of the market however, and the FTSE 100's morning gainers prove that there is still plenty of appetite to buy into these rather more pedestrian names."
"They might not have the glamour of big tech, but the 'recovering economy' theme is there to see among stocks like Rightmove, JD Sports and others. Plus, precious metals miner Fresnillo has finally found favour after a miserable six months."
Rightmove was up 2.8% at midday, JD Sports up 3.5% and Frensillo up 3.8%.
Precious metals miner Fresnillo was helped on Tuesday as gold traded at USD1,706.56 at midday, higher than USD1,682.85 late Monday - though the shiny metal is still down 10% since 2021 began.
At the top of the FTSE 100 was M&G, rising 5.8% after saying it is on track for its medium-term targets after a "resilient" 2020 performance.
M&G, which was demerged from Prudential in 2019, reported assets under management & administration up 4% to GBP367.2 billion from GBP351.5 billion, principally reflecting the acquisition of Royal London's platform business Ascentric back in September.
Pretax profit from continuing operations fell to GBP1.61 billion from GBP1.75 billion a year earlier, as total revenue, net of reinsurance from continuing operations, dropped to GBP15.22 billion from GBP32.13 billion in 2019.
Standard Life Aberdeen was at the other end of the index, falling 4%. The investment and asset management firm reported a decline in fee-based income to GBP1.43 billion in 2020 from GBP1.63 billion in 2019, largely reflecting 2019 outflows.
Pretax profit more than trebled to GBP838 million from GBP243 million. However, on an adjusted basis, pretax profit dropped 17% to GBP487 million from GBP584 million.
The company also unveiled details of a "refreshed" focus on Asia.
Standard Life said it is seeking to deliver client-led growth through Investments, Adviser and Personal, and it has a "clear growth strategy" for each of these areas. Growth in Asia, UK adviser and consumer markets, Solutions and Responsible investing have all been identified as "strategic priorities".
Surging to the top of the mid-caps was Domino's Pizza Group, rallying 10% after saying it is confident going forward as lower expenses helped pretax profit in 2020.
Domino's Pizza said system sales in the 52 weeks ending December 27 were GBP1.35 billion, up from GBP1.21 billion the year before. Like-for-like system sales growth was 10%. Domino's Pizza pretax profit was GBP98.9 million, up from GBP75.1 million the year before, despite revenue slipping to GBP505.1 million from GBP508.3 million.
Going forward, the company said trading in the current financial year has started strongly with exceptional trading over the new year period as the company recorded its highest ever sales week. Domino's Pizza delivery business also continues to perform "very well", it noted.
TP ICAP was the worst performer in the FTSE 250 as it guided to a year-on-year fall in first quarter revenue.
The London-based interdealer broker's 2020 revenue was GBP1.79 billion, down 2.2% from GBP1.83 billion in 2019. TP ICAP's 2020 pretax profit was GBP129 million, up 39% from GBP93 million in 2019. This is partially reflected in 2020 operating costs declining year-on-year following the completion of the integration of ICAP in 2019, it said, resulting in a reduction in significant items.
Looking to 2021, TP ICAP said revenue per trading day in January and February was marginally higher than a year before. However, March 2020 was a record month for revenue, with "very strong" secondary volumes on record-high volatility, meaning that revenue in the first quarter of 2021 is likely to be lower than 2020's equivalent period.
By Lucy Heming; lucyheming@alliancenews.com
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