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(Alliance News) - Stocks in London returned from the long Easter weekend in an upbeat mood, closing in the green on Tuesday.
The FTSE 100 index closed up 44.16 points, or 0.6% at 7,785.72 on Tuesday. The FTSE 250 ended up 159.02 points, or 0.9%, at 18,956.05. The AIM All-Share closed up 5.70 points, or 0.7%, at 816.85.
The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.6% at 778.56, the Cboe UK 250 closed up 0.9% at 16,532.82, and the Cboe Small Companies ended up 0.6% at 13,585.53.
Market mood was positive despite a gloomy forecast from the International Monetary Fund for the UK economy.
UK output is expected to contract by 0.3% this year before rebounding to grow by 1% next year, economists working for the body said.
It puts the UK firmly at the bottom in the G7 group of advanced economies this year. The only other economy that the IMF expects to decline is Germany's, which is expected to contract by 0.1%.
However, it is at least better news than a previous IMF forecast, which predicted that the economy would shrink by 0.6% this year.
The pound was quoted at USD1.2427 at the London equities close on Tuesday, down from USD1.2436 at the close on Thursday.
The IMF predicted the global economy will grow by 2.8% this year and three percent in 2024, a decline of 0.1 percentage point from its previous forecasts in January.
Innnes McFee, chief global economist at Oxford Economics, said that the IMF's forecast looks "too optimistic."
"The impact of bank funding turmoil looks to have been offset in their forecasts by the positive developments in European energy markets, solid economic momentum and China's earlier than expected reopening, to leave the IMF's global GDP projection broadly unchanged. But we think their forecasts underestimate the impact that tightening in financial conditions will have on advanced economies in second half of this year and next," McFee said.
In the FTSE 100, commodity stocks remained the best blue-chip performers at the close.
Antofagasta finished 5.3% higher, Rio Tinto added 5.1%, Anglo American rose 3.8%, and Glencore closed up 3.1%.
Brent oil was quoted at USD85.22 a barrel at the London equities close on Tuesday, up from USD84.48 late Thursday. Gold was quoted at USD2,002.83 an ounce, lower against USD2,009.21 at the close on Thursday.
Flutter Entertainment closed up 3.2% after Sky News reported on Saturday that the Paddy Power owner is setting the stage to appoint John Bryant as its new chair.
According to Sky, the gambling firm is in talks with Bryant, a US-based businessman, and senior independent director at catering company Compass Group.
Citing a person "close to the process", Sky reported that the appointment of Bryant was at an advanced stage, but was not yet finalised. It was "unclear" whether other candidates were in talks with group over the weekend, Sky said.
The move comes amid Flutter's plans for an additional US listing. The resolution for the listing requires the approval of 75% of votes cast by Flutter shareholders, which will be decided at its annual general meeting later this month.
Shares in Compass closed down 0.3%.
In the FTSE 250, Harbour Energy lost 1.1% after it agreed to develop the Viking carbon capture & storage transportation and storage project with BP.
Harbour continues to operate the Viking CSS with a 60% interest, with BP buying a 40% non-operated stake. Harbour did not give any financial details of the deal.
Harbour said that the project has the potential to capture and store up to 10 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year by 2030, one third of the UK's government target of up to 30 million tonnes.
Shares in BP finished 1.1% higher.
Elsewhere in London, Cineworld plunged 35% as it updated on its Chapter 11 proceedings in the US, filing a plan of reorganisation in a Texas bankruptcy court and a disclosure agreement.
Cineworld noted that the plan would mean a wipe out of shareholder value.
The company reiterated the plan has support from lenders holding a majority of its various debt instruments. It seeks to confirm the plan on an "expeditious" timeline, and confirms the restructuring does not allow for recovery of any shareholder value.
"During the restructuring process, Cineworld continues to operate its global business and cinemas as usual without interruption," it said.
In European equities on Tuesday, the CAC 40 in Paris ended up 0.9%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt ended up 0.4%.
The euro stood at USD1.0914 at the European equities close on Tuesday, slightly lower against USD1.0919 at the same time on Thursday. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY133.61 late Tuesday, sharply higher compared to JPY131.72 late Thursday.
Analysts at Brown Brothers Harriman said: "While last week's jobs data was dollar-supportive, this week's inflation and retail sale data will also be key in setting the dollar's near-term direction."
Job gains in the US eased in March for a second straight month, government data showed Friday, adding to signs that the economy is cooling as policymakers push on in their fight against inflation.
The country added 236,000 jobs in March, compared to a revised 326,000 in February and 472,000 in January.
On Wednesday, US inflation data for March will be released at 1330 BST. Markets are expecting the annual inflation rate to cool to 5.2% from 6%, according to FXStreet.
Chris Turner at ING said that the March CPI should make the case for a 25 basis point interest rate hike from the US Federal Reserve at its next meeting on May 3.
Stocks in New York were mixed at the London equities close, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.4%, the S&P 500 index flat, and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.5%.
In Wednesday's UK corporate calendar, there are full-year results from cinema operator Everyman Media Group and DP Eurasia, the master franchisee for Domino's Pizza in Russia, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Georgia.
By Heather Rydings, Alliance News senior economics reporter
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