London's FTSE 100 ended lower on Friday, as the pound surged to a more than two-week high and approached the $1.25 mark on the back of decent UK data and as hopes of a 'softer approach' to tariffs from the US administration hurt the dollar. The FTSE 100 index ended 62.85 points, 0.7%, at 8,502.35. The FTSE 250 lost just 2.34 points at 20,518.05, and the AIM All-Share fell 5.81 points, 0.8%, at...

Promising UK data pushed the pound back above the $1.24 mark on Friday, putting pressure on the FTSE 100 and ensuring London's blue-chip index failed to replicate the more confident trade seen in mainland Europe. The FTSE 100 index was down 29.04 points, 0.3%, at 8,536.16. The FTSE 250 was up 56.83 points, 0.3%, at 20,577.22, and the AIM All-Share was down 2.45 points, 0.3%, at 718.41. The Cboe...

Shares in Bloomsbury (BMY) were up over 2% to 670p in early morning trading as the publishing group said it had reached a new long-term supply agreement with Amazon (AMZN:NASDAQ). The company also reaffirmed confidence in meeting consensus market expectations for the year ending 28 February. Publishing group Bloomsbury is a growth story worth buyingThe board believes these to be full year reven...

British luxury fashion house Burberry (BRBY) topped the FTSE 250 on 24 January, its shares rallying 16% to £12.41 after the footwear-to-leather accessories designer delivered a far better-than-feared drop in third quarter sales. This performance stoked optimism that new chief executive Joshua Schulman's 'Burberry Forward' turnaround strategy to reignite growth and deliver long-term shareholder...

In an unscheduled trading update ahead of its AGM on Monday 27 January, infrastructure and engineering services group Renew Holdings (RNWH:AIM) revealed full-year trading would be below expectations due to 'challenges' in its rail division. The shares, which have been steady performers, increasing more than 10-fold since the firm came to market in 2014, fell as much as 228p or 25% to 681p befor...

The week may have started quietly with markets closed for Martin Luther King Day on Monday (20 Jan) and the inauguration of President Trump, but the calm didn't last. Stocks took off with gains across the board, with all the main indices up around 3% and the S&P 500 notching up a new all-time high. Markets were buoyed by Trump's measured approach to trade tariffs and became positively ecstatic...

The FTSE 100 was up a notch, while the FTSE 250 index was healthily in the green on Friday morning, ahead of flash UK purchasing managers' index data. UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves said she would be tabling an amendment to the plans for taxing non-domiciled residents after 'listening to the concerns' they raised. The changes will increase the temporary repatriation facility, which allows non-doms...

Blue-chip stocks in London advanced on Thursday, as housebuilders buoyed the FTSE 100 index despite jitters from retailers after poor updates. The FTSE 100 index rose 20.07 points, 0.2%, at 8,565.20. It earlier set a new intra-day high of 8,572.51. The FTSE 250 lost 59.91 points, 0.3%, at 20,520.39, and the AIM All-Share ended down just 0.14 of a point at 720.86. The Cboe UK 100 rose 0.3% at 85...

Shares in Zotefoams (ZTF) gained 7% to 316p in morning trading as the speciality chemicals maker said it expects to report a 16% rise in full year revenue to £147.8 million for the year ending 31 December, helped by a strong fourth-quarter performance. The company said adjusted pre-tax profit for the year is expected to be £15.6 million, up 19% which is a 'group record' and ahead of current m...

Electronic Arts (EA:NASDAQ) plummeted 15% in after-hours trading after the video game publisher slashed full year bookings guidance due to a surprise slowdown its EA Sports FC franchise in the fiscal third quarter. If the drop holds, the shares are expected to open at around $120, wiping nearly $4 billion from the company's market value. EA said while its football franchise had clocked up two y...

Stock prices in London were mostly lower at midday on Thursday, ahead of US jobless figures, while the European Central Bank's next rate call due next Thursday is getting closer. 'The FTSE 100's strong start to 2025 is starting to lose some momentum,' commented AJ Bell's Russ Mould, adding: 'In London, retailers were on the back foot with some recent measures of UK consumer confidence suggestin...

Foods-to-fashion giant Associated British Foods (ABF) delivered a disappointing first quarter trading update with weak UK sales at Primark driving a sales growth guidance reduction for the retail jewel in the conglomerate's crown. Analysts downgraded their group profit forecasts on news of subdued sales at Primark over the Christmas quarter, sending shares in the FTSE 100 combine down 2% to a 5...

Stocks in London opened mixed on Thursday, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt and the CAC 40 in Paris opened a notch higher, as investors await eurozone consumer confidence data. The FTSE 100 index opened down 0.15 points at 8,544.98. The FTSE 250 was down 23.09 points, 0.1%, at 20,557.21, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.72 points, 0.2%, at 722.72. The Cboe UK 100 was flat at 856.61, the Cboe UK 250...