9th Jan 2017 08:31
LONDON (Alliance News) - London's blue-chip index opened higher on Monday, bolstered by a weaker pound following comments by UK Prime Minister Theresa May over the weekend which appeared to point toward a so-called 'hard' Brexit from the European Union.
May, in an interview with Sky News, said some people had suggested the UK could "keep bits" of EU membership as it looks to leave the bloc.
But May appeared to shut down that possibility as she said: "We are leaving. We are coming out. We are not going to be a member of the EU any longer."
The pound was trading at USD1.2182 on Monday morning, down from USD1.2312 at the London equities close on Friday.
This underpinned more gains for the FTSE 100, packed with multi-national companies whose results benefit from a weaker pound, building on the seventh consecutive record high the index set on Friday.
The FTSE 100 was up 0.3% at 7,232.43 on Monday morning. The FTSE 250 index was up 0.2% at 18,381.59 and the AIM All-Share was up 0.3% at 865.33.
The BATS UK 100 index was up 0.4% at 12,212.54, the BATS 250 was up 0.3% at 16,726.87, and the BATS Small Companies was up 0.2% at 10,915.57.
In mainland Europe, the French CAC 40 and the German DAX 30 were both up 0.1%.
In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei 225 closed down 0.3%, the Shanghai Composite up 0.5% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong up 0.3%.
On the UK corporate front, bookmaker William Hill said its operating profit for 2016 was at the low end of its guidance after its gross win margin was weaker than anticipated in the final weeks of the year. Shares in the firm were down 2.8%, one of the worst performers in the FTSE 250.
The mid-cap group said its operating profit for 2016 was around GBP260.0 million, at the bottom of its GBP260.0 million to GBP280.0 million guidance.
In the nine weeks to the end of December, wagering trends were in line with the rest of the year, but William Hill said its gross win margin was hit by unfavourable football and horseracing results in December.
At the other end of the mid-cap index, iron ore pellets producer Ferrexpo was up 5.9%, the best FTSE 250 performer. The firm reported lower production for 2016 but said sales and the average selling price for its pellets rose, while cash costs of production fell.
It added it has made significant progress on restructuring its capital position over the course of 2016 and can now focus on benefiting from the operational progress it has made.
In the economic calendar, the Halifax house prices index for the UK is at 0830 GMT, Sentix investor confidence for the eurozone is at 0930 GMT, and the eurozone unemployment rate is at 1000 GMT. The US labor market conditions index is at 1500 GMT, and US consumer credit is at 2000 GMT.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
Copyright 2017 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
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