MARKET REPORT: Amazon joins America’s oldest stock market index in the online giant’s first realignment since the pandemic

Amazon has joined America’s oldest stock market index in the first realignment since the pandemic.

The online retail giant entered the Dow Jones Industrial Average yesterday after seeing its shares rise 15 percent so far this year, pushing gains to 90 percent this decade. But yesterday they were little changed and fell by 0.03 percent.

The Dow is home to 30 major American corporate giants, including Nike, Walmart, Coca-Cola and IBM. Walgreens Boots Alliance is making way for Amazon.

Amazon is the third of the so-called Magnificent Seven technology stocks to join the index, with Microsoft joining in 1999, while Apple has been in the index for almost a decade.

The latest realignment comes as optimism about artificial intelligence has pushed Wall Street to new all-time highs. Yesterday, the Dow Jones rose 0.01 percent, the S&P 500 fell 0.06 percent and the Nasdaq rose 0.2 percent.

In London, the FTSE 100 fell 0.3 percent, or 21.98 points, to 7684.3 and the FTSE 250 fell 0.3 percent, or 52.64 points, to 19126.92.

Standard Chartered extended its gains as analysts from Morgan Stanley, Berenberg and JP Morgan upgraded the lender’s shares.

It came after the bank on Friday reported a 19 percent rise in profits to £4 billion, increased its dividend and announced a £790 million share buyback, as well as a three-year plan to cut costs by £1.2 billion. Shares rose 0.2 percent, or 1.4p, to 636.4p.

Another climber was engineer Rolls-Royce, which reached its highest level since August 2018 after last week’s impressive results. Shares rose 2.3 percent, or 8.1p, to 361.2p.

Sentiment towards Ocado soured after analysts at investment bank Peel Hunt downgraded the online supermarket, warning it had focused on consumer technology and retail for too long. Shares fell 7 percent, or 36.9p, to 491.5p.

The mining sector also came under pressure, with Anglo American down 3.3 percent, or 59.4p, to 1726.6p, Rio Tinto down 2.5 percent, or 130p, to 5067p and Glencore down 1.8% , or 6.85p, to 368.95p.

Stock watch – Ensilica

Shares of Ensilica soared after it reported booming demand for its products.

The AIM-listed chipmaker’s revenues rose 11.5 per cent to £9.6 million in the six months to the end of November. The second half of the financial year has also started well, with a deal with a major telecoms equipment supplier that could be worth more than £28m.

It also obtained its first customer license with a top semiconductor supplier. The shares, which were trading at 50p in 2022, rose 28.7 per cent, or 14.5p, to 65p.

A drug made by AstraZeneca has been approved by the EU as an additional treatment to medicines already used to treat a serious blood disorder.

Shares in the pharmaceutical giant rose 0.3 percent, or 34p, to 10,254p.

Birmingham Bullring owner Hammerson has sold its Union Square shopping center in Aberdeen for £111 million.

The sale to a group linked to Lone Star Real Estate is 8 percent below Union’s end-December price tag of £121 million.

As a result of the deal, Hammerson has completed the £500m program it started in early 2022 to sell off assets it no longer considers essential. However, shares fell 0.3 per cent, or 0.08p, to 25.62p. Four new faces will join the Frasers Group board.

Appointments from the fashion empire of Mike Ashley, owner of Sports Direct, Jack Wills and Flannels, include Sir Jon Thompson, the former chief executive of Watchdog, the Financial Reporting Council. But shares fell 0.3 percent, or 2.5 cents, to 831.5 cents.

Disinfectant manufacturer Tristel reported a record of six months. The group, whose chlorine dioxide chemicals are bought by hospitals to clean medical equipment, reported that revenues rose by a fifth to £20.9m in the first half to the end of December, while profits rose 44 per cent to £3, 4 million.

And the surface disinfection system, which offers a greener alternative to antibacterial wet wipes, has been approved by UK and European regulators. Shares rose 4.4 percent, or 20p, to 470p.

But IT services provider Made Tech went in the opposite direction after customers held back on spending amid continued economic uncertainty. Shares fell 0.6 percent, or 0.05p, to 8.7p.