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| Yesterday’s UK 100 Leaders | Price (p) | % Chg |
| Prudential PLC | 726.6 | 6.5% |
| Entain PLC | 695.2 | 5.3% |
| Barratt Redrow PLC | 456.0 | 4.4% |
| Croda International PLC | 3,131.0 | 2.7% |
| Schroders PLC | 385.2 | 2.3% |
| Yesterday’s UK 100 Laggards | Price (p) | % Chg |
| Centrica PLC | 136.6 | -2.5% |
| Diageo PLC | 2,125.5 | -2.1% |
| Glencore PLC | 342.8 | -2.0% |
| Games Workshop Group PLC | 14,380.0 | -1.9% |
| St. James’s Place PLC | 1,097.0 | -1.8% |
| Major World Indices | Price | % Chg | 1 YEAR |
| UK 100 INDEX | 8,807 | 0.3% | 16.3% |
| DOW JONES INDUS. AVG | 44,392 | -0.5% | 14.5% |
| DAX INDEX | 22,148 | 0.5% | 30.0% |
| NIKKEI 225 | 38,964 | 0.4% | 2.6% |
| S&P/ASX 200 INDEX | 8,535 | 0.6% | 12.3% |
| Commodities | Units | Price | % Chg |
| WTI Crude Oil (Nymex) | USD/bbl. | 71.36 | -2.67% |
| Brent Crude (ICE) | USD/bbl. | 75.15 | -2.40% |
| Gold Spot | USD/t oz. | 2,896 | -0.1% |
| Copper (Comex) | USd/lb. | 470 | 2.1% |
Click graph to enlarge
The UK 100 called to open +11 points at 8,818. The UK 100 looks set to open higher this morning, after the UK economy unexpectedly grew by 0.1% in the final quarter of 2024.
The S&P index slipped 0.27% to end at 6,051.97, and the Dow Jones tumbled 225.09 points, or 0.5%, to 44,368.56. The Nasdaq eked out a 0.03% gain to close at 19,649.95. This comes after consumer prices rose more than expected in January, raising concern that inflation may reignite.
Asian shares mostly rose Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump agreed with Russian leader Vladimir Putin to start talks about ending the war in Ukraine. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 jumped 1.3% in morning trading to 39,474.80. Australia's S&P/ASX200 added 0.2% to 8,550.70. South Korea's Kospi gained 0.9% to 2,572.37. The Hang Seng surged 0.9% to 22,051.16, while the Shanghai Composite edged down 0.2% to 3,339.22.
Barclays reported a 24% rise in annual pretax profit on Thursday, slightly above expectations, as its investment bank reported strong performance for 2024 and slower than expected interest rate cuts sustained income in its domestic lending business. The British corporate, consumer and investment bank reported profit before tax for the year to December 31 of £8.11 billion, slightly above the £8.07 billion average of analysts' forecasts and higher than the £6.6 billion it reported for the year prior. They also announced launching they were launching a £1 billion share buyback.
British American Tobacco reported a 6.2 billion pound ($7.74 billion) hit from a long-running lawsuit in Canada on Thursday and warned of "significant" headwinds in Bangladesh and Australia in 2025 after annual revenue missed forecast. Health risks associated with tobacco and smoking alternatives have been under regulatory scrutiny for several years, and cigarette makers are facing several challenges globally from policy shifts to anti-tobacco activism. The maker of Lucky Strike and Dunhill cigarettes and some rivals in October had neared a C$32.5 billion settlement in Canada, and new vaping regulations in Australia came into force last year, in a bid to curb youth vaping. The company expects 2025 revenue to grow about 1% at constant currency rates, and performance is projected to be weighted towards the second half of the year. Revenue for the 12 months ended December 31 was 25.87 billion pounds and adjusted profit stood at 362.5 pence per share, compared with expectations of 26.11 billion pounds and 362.2 pence, respectively, according to a company-compiled poll.
RELX reported a 10% rise in full-year adjusted operating profit on Thursday driven by demand for its data analytics, and it said it expected another year of strong growth in 2025. Shares in RELX, which competes with Thomson Reuters, have risen 23% in the last 12 months, reaching an all-time high of 4,144 pence earlier this week.
Unilever said on Thursday its ice cream business will be separated by way of demerger, through listing of the business in Amsterdam, London and New York. "This decision follows a full review by the Board of separation options," the company said. The owner of the popular Magnum and Wall's brands had announced plans last year to separate the ice cream division to win back investor confidence after years of underperformance. Unilever reported underlying sales growth of 4% on Thursday, compared with a 4.1% growth forecast by analysts in a company-compiled poll.
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UK
Barclays (BARC)
British American Tobacco (BATS)
Coca-Cola HBC (CCH)
RELX (REL)
Renishaw (RSW)
Unilever (ULVR)
US
Deere & Co (DE) PMO
Airbnb (ABNB) AMC
Applied Materials (AMAT) AMC
Coinbase Global (COIN) AMC
Palo Alto Networks (PANW) AMC
Twilio (TWLO) AMC
UK
Natwest Group (NWG)
Segro (SGRO)
US
Moderna (MRNA) PMO
German Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices
UK Gross Domestic Product
UK Industrial Production
UK Manufacturing Production
EU Economic Bulletin
EU Industrial Production
US Initial Jobless Claims
US Producer Price Index
UK 100 companies going ex-dividend on 13th February 2025:
Shell
Pershing Square Holdings
UK 250 companies going ex-dividend on 13th February 2025:
NextEnergy Solar Fund
Greencoat UK Wind
Target Healthcare REIT
Murray Income Trust
ICG Enterprise Trust
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