30th Apr 2025 12:05
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London were higher at midday on Wednesday, while overseas data from Eurostat showed the eurozone economy expanding faster than expected.
The FTSE 100 index was up 11.50 points, 0.1%, at 8,474.96. The FTSE 250 was 130.57 points, 0.7%, at 19,940.29, and the AIM All-Share was up 6.19 points, 0.9%, at 687.50.
The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.1% at 844.42, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.8% at 17,472.90, and the Cboe Small Companies was up 0.1% at 15,329.12.
"The FTSE 100 held firm as corporate results came thick and fast," said AJ Bell's Russ Mould. "Investors are looking closely at commentary on how businesses will be impacted by tariffs and we're starting to get the first insights. Some businesses have withdrawn earnings guidance while they try to get their head around the potential impact, while others are now putting out initial estimates."
On the FTSE 100 GSK gained 4.2%, the second-biggest winner after Smith & Nephew, up 7.0%, with Mould saying the pharmaceutical maker's "upbeat tone helped to lift the broader pharma sector".
The London-based firm said pretax profit was GBP2.11 billion in the three months that ended March 31, up 56% from GBP1.36 billion a year before. Total sales rose 2.1% to GBP7.52 billion, led by Speciality Medicines where they jumped 16% to GBP2.93 billion.
GSK declared a 16p dividend for the first quarter, the same as for the fourth quarter of 2025 and in line with its total expected payout for 2025 of 64p.
However, Mould said its performance overall was "lopsided" with "ongoing weakness in vaccines", adding: "The key concern near-term is how tariffs might impact GSK... [but] GSK has seemingly shrugged off the threat of tariffs, saying it has options regarding supply chains and production."
Glencore led the large-cap laggers, losing 7.0%.
The Barr, Switzerland-based commodity trader and miner delivered copper production of 167,900 tonnes in the first quarter of 2025, down 30% from 239,700 tonnes a year earlier.
Energy coal output fell 7.1% to 23.4 million tonnes, reflecting the progressive impact of two scheduled mine closures in Australia, and ferrochrome production dropped 6.7% to 277,000 tonnes.
Glencore however kept its full-year guidance mostly unchanged.
Genus remained the clear FTSE 250 leader, up 25%.
AG Barr rose 1.9% after the Cumbernauld, Scotland-based branded beverage business said it was in exclusive discussions with a potential buyer of its Strathmore business.
On AIM, Galantas Gold lost 14%.
The Northern Ireland and Scotland-focused gold miner generated no revenue for 2024, unchanged from 2023, although its pretax loss narrowed to CAD1.5 million from CAD8.6 million.
In European equities on Wednesday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.5%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 0.6%.
Ireland's harmonised consumer price index rose 2.0% in April from a year before, according to a Central Statistics Office estimate, accelerating from a 1.8% annual increase in March. On a monthly basis, harmonised CPI inflation was 0.4% in April, slowed from 0.7% in March.
Separately, the CSO said Ireland's unemployment rate declined to 4.1% in April from 4.4% in March, though the March reading was revised up from the previously reported 4.0%.
Eurostat, meanwhile, reported that seasonally adjusted gross domestic product in the euro area rose 0.4% in the three months to March, following a 0.2% increase in the final quarter of 2024 and ahead of the 0.2% rise forecast by the FXStreet-cited market consensus. In the wider European Union, GDP rose 0.3%, slowing from 0.4% in the prior quarter.
On an annual basis, GDP grew 1.2% in the eurozone and 1.4% in the EU, unchanged from the fourth quarter of last year and also ahead of the 1% rise expected.
In Germany, GDP grew by 0.2% in the first quarter of 2025 from the fourth quarter of 2024, swinging from a decline of 0.2% in the fourth quarter as expected.
And in France, according to Insee, producer prices in French industry fell 1.1% in March from February, following a 0.2% decline in February from January, while the annual rate eased to a 0.3% decline from 0.4%.
Separately, Insee said in a flash estimate that consumer prices rose 0.5% month-on-month in April, following a 0.2% increase in March, driven by higher prices for services and food.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3360 at midday on Wednesday in London, lower compared to USD1.3407 at the equities close on Tuesday. The euro stood at USD1.1362, lower against USD1.1400. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at JPY143.07 compared to JPY142.18.
Stocks in New York were called lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was called down 15.00 points, the S&P 500 index down 0.3%, and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.5%.
Microsoft, up 0.1% pre-market, has committed to boosting its presence in Europe and protecting European citizens' data against a backdrop of rising "geopolitical volatility".
Donald Trump has taken umbrage over the EU's rules against Big Tech – dominated by US companies including Microsoft – but Microsoft President Brad Smith struck a positive note during a visit to Brussels.
"We are at a moment in time when business needs to be a bridge across the Atlantic," he said, later vowing that if Microsoft was asked to suspend or cease cloud operations in Europe, it would "promptly and vigorously contest such a measure". (Some in Europe worry that access to US servers could possibly be cut if Trump, whose ties with tech titans have grown, opted to use this leverage.)
"We are committing today that if any government anywhere in the world ever issues an order that seeks to compel Microsoft to suspend or cease operations and support for Europe out of our data centres here, we will go to court," Smith added.
In Asia on Wednesday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo closed up 0.6%. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed down 0.2%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong closed up 0.6%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 0.7%.
Brent oil was quoted lower at USD62.66 a barrel at midday in London on Wednesday from USD64.48 late Tuesday.
Gold was quoted lower at USD3,275.69 an ounce against USD3,312.17.
Still to come on Wednesday's economic calendar, Canada releases GDP data while the US has multiple releases including GDP, ADP unemployment, and Chicago PMI.
By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter
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