24th Mar 2025 09:03
(Alliance News) - London opened in the green on Monday, amid positive UK investor sentiment on hopes of more targeted US tariff decisions and manufacturing sector readings.
The FTSE 100 index opened up 48.13 points, 0.6%, at 8,693.31. The FTSE 250 was up 103.68 points, 0.6%, at 20,022.05, and the AIM All-Share was trading up 2.90 points, 0.4%, at 692.02.
The Cboe UK 100 was 0.4% higher at 869.01, the Cboe UK 250 was 0.3% higher at 17,461.42, and the Cboe Small Companies was flat at 15,687.06.
"The FTSE 100 is upbeat at the start of the week, rising amid more positive sentiment as hopes wash around about the potential for US tariffs to be more targeted," said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Susannah Streeter.
"President Trump’s latest deadline for 'reciprocal' tariffs to be re-imposed on trading partners Canada and Mexico looms on April 2. But expectations are growing that they could be tweaked and be more focused on specific goods and sectors, instead of swathes of duties triggered in a blanket fashion. Investors are also awaiting closely watched economic snapshots, with PMI data set to indicate the strength of manufacturing sectors around the world."
In the US on Friday, Wall Street ended in the green, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.1%, the S&P 500 up 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.5%.
"US markets ended a tentatively positive week on the front foot, although the gains were not enough to reverse the damage which has been done so far this year," said interactive investor analyst Richard Hunter.
"The latest Presidential pronouncement suggested that there could be some flexibility on tariffs...while also confirming that talks would continue with China this week. This had the effect of erasing earlier losses on the main indices, but investors remain dubious given the constantly changing narrative. Indeed, in some ways the comments simply validate the concerns which have weighed so heavily. The uncertainty has been widespread, with decisions being delayed on investment and hiring for companies, spending for consumers and allocations for investors.
"In the meantime, there remains a keen eye on the state of the nation, and the last full week of the quarter brings any number of opportunities to gauge the health of the economy...Over the next few weeks, first quarter earnings will begin to filter through, where an increasing number of companies have been dialling back estimates and expectations in view of the overarching issues with which they have had to contend."
Still to come on Monday's economic calendar, the eurozone, UK and US flash composite PMIs at 0900 GMT, 0930 GMT and 0945 GMT.
In European equities on Monday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.8%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt slipped 0.5%.
The pound was quoted at USD1.2952 early on Monday in London, compared to USD1.2914 at the equities close on Friday. The euro stood higher at USD1.0847, against USD1.0819.
Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at JPY149.54 compared to JPY149.05.
Celadon Pharmaceuticals tumbled 64% on Monday morning.
The fall follows James Short, chief executive officer and 39.5% shareholder, announcing last week that he intends to propose de-listing from AIM at the next general meeting, as well as the removal of four non-executive directors and the firm's chair. Short believes delisting will "help the group to significantly reduce its operational costs and also enable the company to more easily access capital, and on more attractive terms".
The board, up until March 19, had not been supportive of Short's de-listing proposal, but on Friday tendered the resignations of non-executive directors Robert Barr, Elizabeth Shanahan, David Firth and Steven Hajioff with immediate effect. The remaining directors at the pharmaceutical company focused on cannabis-based medicines are now just Chair Alexander Anton and CEO Short. Chair Anton intends to resign from the board if shareholders approve the delisting plans.
Sovereign Metals slipped 8.3%, following its request for a trading halt, for shares listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. The pause in trading is pending a proposed capital raise, to remain in place until March 26 or until an announcement is made.
FTSE 100's Intertek Group, on the other hand, rose 2.3% at Monday's open.
The consumer product testing and certification services provider launches its previously-announced share buyback for up to GBP350 million, to be completed by December 31 and run by JP Morgan Securities.
In Asia on Monday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo faded 0.2%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was up 0.2%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was trading up 0.9%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed 0.1% higher.
Rockhopper Exploration climbed 9.2% on a report that overall resources at its Sea Lion project remain unchanged. The report was published by operator Navitas Petroleum, and notes that a "significant number" of barrels have been moved from 'development on hold' to 'development pending' classification.
Brent oil was quoted lower at USD71.96 a barrel early in London on Monday, slipping from USD72.01 late Friday.
Gold was quoted higher at USD3,026.89 an ounce against USD3,013.40.
By Emily Parsons, Alliance News reporter
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