- FTSE 100 up 0.4% to 6,083
- Gold down 0.54% to $1,134.08
- £/$ – 1.5299
The FTSE 100 halted its decline yesterday, climbing 0.4% to close at 6,083.
A good set of results pushed Ashtead to the top of the table, with a 7.7% rise. Hikma Pharmaceuticals added 4.4%, and Inmarsat gained 3.3%.
In Europe’s markets yesterday, the Paris CAC 40 rose 0.3% to 4,554, and the German Xetra Dax was 0.3% higher at 10,048.
In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.8% to 16,351, the S&P 500 added 1.8% to 1,948, and the Nasdaq Composite was 2.5% higher at 4,749.
Overnight in Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.5% to 18,182, and the broader Topix index added 0.6% to 1,474. China’s markets were closed for a public holiday.
Brent spot was trading at $50.32 early today, and in New York, crude oil was at $46.17. Spot gold was trading at $1,133 an ounce, silver was at $14.72 and platinum was at $1,011.
In the forex markets this morning, sterling was trading against the US dollar at 1.5263 and against the euro at 1.3594. The dollar was trading at 0.8906 against the euro and 120.40 against the Japanese yen.
And in the UK, Easyjet has raised its profits forecast after a strong summer, carrying over seven million passengers in both July and August. The airline now expects to make full-year profits of between £675m and £700m.