Stock prices in London edged down at midday on Friday, although companies of all sizes in the gambling sector performed well.
The FTSE 100 index was down 31.96 points, 0.4%, at 8,315.39. The FTSE 250 was down 27.94 points, 0.1%, at 21,066.22, and the AIM All-Share was down 1.92 points, 0.3%, at 772.87.
The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.3% at 831.21, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.1% at 18,451.52, and the Cboe Small Companies was down 0.1% at 16,855.76.
In European equities on Friday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.3%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 0.6%.
‘The market’s short, sharp shock at the start of August is starting to feel like a distant memory as global indices claw back their losses and the VIX volatility index falls back to the sort of levels it has seen for much of the last year or so,’ said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.
The pound was quoted at $1.905 at midday on Friday in London, higher compared to $1.2866 at the equities close on Thursday. The euro stood at $1.0989, little changed from $1.0988. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JP¥148.59 compared to JP¥148.89.
Across the Main Market, it was a strong day for gaming stocks. Entain topped the FTSE 100, rising 2.6%. Playtech added 2.2% in the FTSE 250, while small-cap Evoke rose 7.3%.
Stocks in the sector were seeing a positive read-across from this week’s news that Playtech is holding talks with Flutter Entertainment regarding the possible sale of its Snaitech business.
GSK updated on the ongoing Zantac litigation, its shares edging down 0.2%.
The pharmaceutical firm noted that a court ruling in Florida found in its favour. The judgement found in favour of GSK, thus excluding the plaintiff’s experts’ general and specific causation testimony that ranitidine, known as Zantac, was a significant risk for Wilson’s prostate cancer.
GSK said it welcomed the ruling and will now seek dismissal of the upcoming Wilson case in Florida, whereby plaintiffs alleged a causal link between ranitidine and prostate cancer.
‘[The court]’s ruling is consistent with scientific consensus that there is no consistent or reliable evidence that ranitidine increases the risk of any cancer,’ GSK said.
Zantac was a heartburn drug that was pulled off the market in 2020 at the request of the US Food & Drug Administration, after low levels of a ‘probable carcinogen’ were found in samples.
The carcinogen, known as NDMA, is not harmful in very small amounts. However, tests showed that there were excessive quantities of NDMA in ranitidine, otherwise known as Zantac.
AJ Bell’s Russ Mould commented: ‘The ongoing legal battle over links between Zantac and cancer remains an issue for the business thanks to the sheer volume of cases out there. GSK saw a pretty similar dismissal in late 2022 which it might have hoped would mark the beginning of the end to the saga, yet here we are more than a year and a half later.’
Meanwhile, Frasers Group managed to edge up 0.1%, after positive UK retail sales data for July.
The Office for National Statistics said retail sales volumes are estimated to have climbed 0.5% monthly in July after a decline of 0.9% in June from May.
However, as AJ Bell’s head of financial analysis Danni Hewson notes, the British consumer is still grappling with a lot of uncertainty.
‘Inflation is so much lower than it was, but we know fuel prices will rise this autumn and grocery prices have ticked higher this month,’ she said.
‘Even with interest rates expected to fall further there’s a niggling concern about what October’s Budget might mean for all our finances. We understand the importance of consumer confidence for economic growth – of people not only feeling better off but being prepared to spend.’
Stocks in New York were tipped to open largely unchanged. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 index were called flat, and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.1%.
Brent oil was quoted at $80.04 a barrel at midday in London on Friday, down from $81.30 late Thursday. Gold was quoted at $2,464.05 an ounce, up against $2,456.75.
Still to come on Friday’s economic calendar, there’s US building permits at 13.30 BST.
Copyright 2024 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
