MARKET REPORT: BP and Shell gain £14bn as oil prices rise towards $80
BP and Shell have added a combined £14 billion to their values this week as oil prices continue to rise.
Shares in the two have risen following a 13 percent rise in oil prices since Iran fired its missiles into Israel. Oil was trading at less than $70 a barrel before Tuesday’s attack, but rose to $79 yesterday.
BP shares rose a further 1.9 per cent, or 7.9p, to 416.9p yesterday, boosting gains for the week to 7.4 per cent or £4.7bn.
Shell added 0.5 percent, or 13.5 cents, to 2,577.5 cents, meaning it is up 6.3 percent, or £9.5 billion, in the past five days.
In the broader market, the FTSE 100 was virtually flat, losing 1.9 points to end the day at 8,281, while the FTSE 250 rose 0.8 percent, or 160 points, to 20,900.
It was a week to forget for Aston Martin. The luxury car maker posted its second-worst weekly performance since going public six years ago.
Rise: Shares of Shell and BP have risen thanks to a 13 percent rise in crude oil since Iran fired its missiles at Israel
Shares fell more than 30 percent following a raft of downgrades by brokers after Aston Martin cut its profit and production targets.
And yesterday, analysts at Citi cut their price target for the share from 176p to 117p. However, the bargain hunters rose, sending shares up 4.7 percent, or 4.9 cents, to 109.8 cents.
According to Goldman Sachs, British banks are at a ‘major turning point’. The bank’s analysts said NatWest had entered a ‘new era’.
Goldman Sachs initiated its coverage of the stock with a buy rating and a price target of 440p.
Shares in NatWest rose 3.9 percent, or 12.8p, to 342.5p, while Lloyds added 2.4 percent, or 1.4p, to 58.80p.
Britain’s biggest housebuilder will complete the takeover of a smaller rival after the deal was approved by the competition watchdog. Barratt Developments, which agreed to acquire Redrow for £2.5 billion in February, said the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is now satisfied with the partnership.
The takeover was investigated by the CMA amid concerns that the deal could lead to higher prices or lower quality homes around Whitchurch, in Shropshire.
Barratt and Redrow have addressed this by appointing estate agency Savills as an independent third party to manage the sales process of the remaining unsold homes. Shares in Barratt rose 0.2 per cent, or 0.8p, to 482.1p.
Schroders was another big gainer after an upgrade from the broker.
Analysts at Exane BNP Paribas increased their rating for the fund manager from ‘underperform’ to ‘neutral’. Shares rose 3.9 percent, or 13.4p, to 360.6p.
Experian is to acquire a digital fraud prevention provider in Brazil for £267 million. The credit scorer said it expects the deal for ClearSale, which has more than 7,400 active customers, to close in the first half of next year.
Shares fell 2.5 percent, or 97p, to 3862p.
Airlines recovered after a difficult week in which tensions rose in the Middle East.
EasyJet shares rose 2.6 per cent, or 12.7p, to 493p, Wizz Air added 3.7 per cent, or 45p, to 1274p and BA owner IAG rose 1.7 per cent, or 3.3p, to 192p. Business continued to be tough for cryptocurrency miner Argo Blockchain after sales fell from £1.8 million in August to £1.7 million last month. Shares fell 1.2 percent, or 0.1p, to 8.5p.
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