Rolls-Royce was among the blue-chip risers, as the turnaround plan won a vote of confidence in the City.
The FTSE 100 engine maker, which had a great start to 2023, got another boost as analysts at Jefferies raised the price target from 170 pence to 210 pence. Shares rose 2.1 percent, or 3.05 pence, to 148.15 pence.
Boss Tufan Erginbilgic said the recovery is now “moving fast.”
Global equity markets reeled on growing concerns about the US debt ceiling.
The White House is embroiled in a bitter dispute with Republicans over raising the government’s borrowing limit from its current £25 trillion.
Stock boost: Rolls-Royce, which had a great start to 2023, got another boost as analysts at Jefferies raised the price target from 170p to 210p
If a deal is not reached, the US could run out of money to pay its bills by June 1 – triggering a bankruptcy that could trigger a sharp economic downturn and turmoil in financial markets.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned that such a bankruptcy would leave millions of Americans without income payments, potentially triggering a recession that would destroy many of the country’s jobs and businesses.
And she said the accompanying financial crisis could exacerbate the severity of the recession, adding: “It is very conceivable that we could see some financial markets break – with global panics driving margin calls, runs and sell-offs.” Time is running out.’
With data from China showing the economy is cooling, the FTSE 100 fell 0.3 percent, or 26.62 points, to 7751.08 and the FTSE 250 rose 0.1 percent, or 13.97 points, to 19272.72.
Asos shares fell as two shareholders revised their stakes a week after it reported hefty first-half losses.
Ken Griffin’s Citadel, a Miami-based hedge fund that manages £46 billion in assets, increased its stake in the fast fashion group from 4.79 percent to 5.69 percent.
But T Rowe Price, an investment house, cut its stake in Asos from 5.98 percent to 3.22 percent. Shares fell 0.4 percent, or 1.6 pence, to 398.9 pence.
Marston’s, which has 1,440 pubs, said consumers’ thirst for socializing has not been quenched by high household bills.
The group posted a smaller half-year loss of £3.6 million compared to £7.5 million in the same period last year.
Sales increased by 10.7 percent in the six months to April 1 compared to a year earlier. Shares fell 6.3 percent, or 2.35 pence, to 34.8 pence.
Sales at Greggs rose 17.1 per cent to £609 million in the first 19 weeks of 2023, with hot dishes such as chicken goujons and potato wedges being particularly popular. Shares fell 3.2 percent, or 92p, to 2752p.
Genus plunged into the red after the farmer warned that profits would be lower than hoped due to ongoing unrest in the Chinese pig market.
The pig genetics operation in China made a profit of £8.8m in the six months to the end of December.
But the company is now expected to be “modestly loss-making” in the second half of the year to June 30 as pig prices remain volatile.
As a result, earnings for the entire group are expected to be lower than hoped for the year through the end of June. Shares fell 0.9 percent, or 24p, to 2544p.
Higher interest rates made it difficult for Land Securities.
The commercial property owner of central London offices and the Bluewater shopping center in Kent said the value of its portfolio fell 7.7 per cent to £10.2 billion in the 12 months to the end of March.
The result was a loss of £622 million, following a profit of £875 million the previous year.
Despite the economic turmoil, it forecasts estimated rental value growth of between 1% and 5% for London and major retail destinations for the year to the end of March 2024.
Shares rose 2.4 percent, or 14.6 pence, to 634.6 pence yesterday.
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