Housebuilders, packaging stocks lift UK shares

  • Reuters
  • Stock Market News
Housebuilders, packaging stocks lift UK shares
Credit: © Reuters.

(For a live blog on European stocks, type LIVE/ in an Eikon news window)

* FTSE 100 up 0.5 pct

* FTSE 250 up 0.6 pct

* Rolls-Royce higher after rating upgrade

* DS Smith rises after rival Smurfit Kappa's results

* Dunelm up after higher earnings

Feb 13 (Reuters) - London's blue-chip stocks gained on Wednesday as positive results and hopes of a possible delay to the UK's exit from the European Union lifted housebuilders and packaging firms DS Smith and Smurfit Kappa were boosted by upbeat earnings.

The FTSE index .FTSE was up 0.5 percent and the midcaps .FTMC were 0.6 percent higher by 0909 GMT, ahead of inflation data due at 0930 GMT.

Housebuilders Persimmon PSN.L , Barratt BDEV.L and Taylor Wimpey TW.L - among most vulnerable to a no-deal Brexit - were among the biggest gainers after midcap Galliford Try GFRD.L reported higher first-half results. led the FTSE 250, hitting its highest since end-November.

A trader also cited growing hopes that Brexit could be delayed if a EU divorce deal agreeable by all parties is not reached by March 29.

The UK's exit from the bloc remains unclear with just over six weeks till the deadline as Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday asked lawmakers to give her more time to negotiate a deal acceptable to both Brussels and British parliament.

Elsewhere, Asian stocks touched a more than four-month high on optimism that the United States and China might be able to hammer out a deal to resolve their protracted trade dispute.

That lifted shares of Asia-focussed companies with HSBC HSBA.L and luxury brand Burberry BRBY.L rising 1.1 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively.

Global miners .FTNMX1770 were on course for their best day so far this month as London copper prices were headed for their first session of gain in five.

In single stock moves, Rolls-Royce RR.L was the best FTSE 100 performer with a 3 percent gain. It rose to a four-month high after a rating upgrade from Credit Suisse (SIX: CSGN ).

Packaging group DS Smith SMDS.L followed close with a 2.9 percent gain as rival Smurfit Kappa SKG.I said the current year had started positively after reporting strong results. London-listed shares of Smurfit Kappa also added 1.6 percent. operator TUI TUIT.L underperformed with a 3.4 percent fall, extending losses from the previous session when it posted a bigger first-quarter loss.

In a similar vein, online trading platform Plus500 PLUSP.L declined 5.1 percent after losing nearly one-third in value on Tuesday when it issued a profit warning.

Supporting the midcaps was Dunelm DNLM.L that rose 3.3 percent after reporting a jump in first-half earnings.

Add Chart to Comment

Comment Guidelines

We encourage you to use comments to engage with users, share your perspective and ask questions of authors and each other. However, in order to maintain the high level of discourse we’ve all come to value and expect, please keep the following criteria in mind: 

  • Enrich the conversation
  • Stay focused and on track. Only post material that’s relevant to the topic being discussed.
  • Be respectful. Even negative opinions can be framed positively and diplomatically.
  •  Use standard writing style. Include punctuation and upper and lower cases.
  • NOTE: Spam and/or promotional messages and links within a comment will be removed
  • Avoid profanity, slander or personal attacks directed at an author or another user.
  • Don’t Monopolize the Conversation. We appreciate passion and conviction, but we also believe strongly in giving everyone a chance to air their thoughts. Therefore, in addition to civil interaction, we expect commenters to offer their opinions succinctly and thoughtfully, but not so repeatedly that others are annoyed or offended. If we receive complaints about individuals who take over a thread or forum, we reserve the right to ban them from the site, without recourse.
  • Only English comments will be allowed.

Perpetrators of spam or abuse will be deleted from the site and prohibited from future registration at Investing.com’s discretion.

Drop an image here or Supported formats: *.jpg, *.png, *.gif up to 5mb

Error: File type not supported

Drop an image here or

100
Please try another search