share this article!

2 Minutes Read A guy walks by the London Stock Exchange in London, Britain, on August 24, 2015, sheltering under an umbrella. (Reuters) – REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett/File Photo The FTSE 100 rose on Thursday, with Associated British Foods moving to the top of the blue-chip index, as a series of solid earnings reports helped investors look past concerns about rising COVID-19 infections in the UK. After third-quarter sales at its Primark fashion stores, which reopened after COVID-19 lockdowns, came in ahead of estimates in all markets, the food and clothes retailer climbed 4% to its highest level in nearly two weeks. On the back of robust commodity prices, the FTSE 100 rose 1.2 percent, with heavyweight financials and precious and base metal miners leading the way. “Most corporate earnings are bound to show good performance when compared to the previous year when we were right in the middle of the pandemic,” said Keith Temperton, a sales trader at Forte Securities. “We expect earnings for most companies to look bright going forward as we slowly begin to exit the lockdowns.” The domestically focused mid-cap index gained 0.9 percent, with Easyjet being the biggest gainer. The value of travel stocks increased by 2.2 percent. As momentum develops for a full reopening of travel from the United Kingdom, Britain’s commerce minister said the country is working with countries throughout the European Union to encourage them to accept its fully vaccinated travelers. So far this year, the FTSE 100 has risen 10.2 percent, aided by low interest rates and government assistance. However, it has lagged behind the rest of the European market, as a recent spike in coronavirus infections has prompted concerns about the economy’s speed of recovery. According to four people familiar with the talks, Royal Dutch Shell gained 1.6 percent on plans to exit Aera, its California-based oil and gas-producing joint venture with Exxon Mobil Corp. Even after reporting a nearly quadrupled yearly profit due to increased demand for home appliances and office supplies due to the epidemic, online electrical retailer AO World dipped 0.6 percent. Shashank Nayar contributed reporting from Bengaluru, and Subhranshu Sahu edited the piece./nRead More

share this article!