London's stocks were mostly higher at Friday midday amid gloomy economic data which could boost expectations for interest rate cuts.The FTSE 100 index rose 52.48 points, 0.6%, at 8,201.52. The FTSE 250 climbed 170.72 points, 0.8%, at 20,520.41, and the AIM All-Share gained 4.33 points, 0.6%, at 730.07.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.6% at 824.79, the Cboe UK 250 was up 1.1% at 17,998.02, and the Cboe Sma

Cerillion (CER:AIM) £18.90Gain to date: 19.8%Genuine growth stocks may be hard to come by on the UK market but Cerillion (CER:AIM) is a rare gem which qualifies. Forecast-beating full year results had analysts gushing, with Canaccord Genuity talking up the stock's chances of more than doubling. The broker observing 'more market share gains likely; we see a path to £38 on four to five-year view'.

It's been a prosperous time to have invested in the markets. Each one of the major share indices around the world has delivered a positive total return over the past 12 months, factoring in share price performance and dividends.At the top end, the US has returned 32.5% as measured by the S&P 500 index; Japan's Nikkei 225 index has returned 15.3%; and even 'unloved' UK has lined investors' pockets

Three tried and tested market principles were reinforced by the latest update from beleaguered energy services firm Wood Group (WG.).I have followed this business for nearly two decades and it's hard to remember a time when it was in a worse state than it is today.That's backed up by the share price which traded at all-time lows below 50p in response to the company's devastating missive on 7 Novem

Could you please explain how someone's drawdown pot is taken into account when working out how much you have to pay towards care costs.For example, for the purposes of working this out, is the pot of money converted into an annuity income based on the person's age and capital pot value.And if so, what type of annuity is used? Is it a single life one regardless of whether the person in the home is

Markets seem to approve of the election of Donald Trump as the 47th US president. The S&P 500 has hit a record high in the wake of the election result, crossing over the 6,000 mark for the first time. This latest bump comes on the back of an exceptional run for US stocks, which has put other regional markets firmly in the shade, including the UK's own stock market.The historic performance differen

The FTSE 100 on Tuesday morning outperformed its French and German peers, as investors await consumer price inflation data from the eurozone.The UK government is having a busy week. Downing Street has confirmed that the UK is set to relaunch trade talks with India, while ministers continue to face calls from farmers and opposition parties to scrap its changes to agricultural inheritance tax. The N

Stocks in Europe were mixed on Monday midday amid more staffing announcements by incoming US president Donald Trump, while the gold price continued to climb.'The FTSE 100 ticked higher on Monday, helped by a decent showing for resources and financial stocks,' commented AJ Bell's Russ Mould.Meanwhile in Europe, the eurozone's trade surplus with the rest of the world grew significantly in September,

EPS forecasts cut againShares fall as much as 18%Long-term outlook positiveLondon-based scientific instrument specialist Judges (JDG:AIM) lowered its earnings guidance for a second time this year after what it called a 'disappointing trading performance' heading into the end of 2024.The shares initially fell as much as £19 or 18.5% to £83.52, making them the worst performers in the AIM 100 index

Palm oil price up 40%'Significant' boost to profitabilityFurther acquisitions on the agendaShares in MP Evans (MPE:AIM) cultivated a 7.5% rise to £10 in early dealings, marking a new two year high, after the Indonesia-based sustainable palm oil producer upgraded year-to-December 2024 profit guidance off the back of surging palm oil prices, which have risen some 40% year-to-date.A more favourable

First half revenue up 27%Strong start to second halfBudget impact of £11 millionPubs and hotels group Young & Co (YNGA:AIM) delivered strong like-for-like revenue growth in the first half to 30 September and said recent trading has been strong with an acceleration in like-for-like growth.Investors gave the company the thumbs-up, marking the shares higher by 18.8p or 2% to 934.8p, though they rema

Stock prices in Europe were generally lower on Friday morning, after optimism from rate cuts in the US and UK wore off, as China unveiled a huge support package under which it will raise the local government debt ceiling.China's top lawmakers have approved a proposal to increase the debt ceiling for local governments by $840 billion, state media said as a key meeting wrapped up in Beijing.Meanwhil

Consolidation is a growing theme across the investment trust sector against a backdrop of stubbornly-wide NAV (net asset value) discounts and increasing pressure on sub-scale funds.2024 is already a record year for M&A (mergers and acquisitions) in a sector which has just seen the eleventh such deal announced, the value-oriented Invesco Asia Trust (IAT) planning to combine with Asia Dragon Trust (

The polls had forecast a knife-edge election but as it turned out Donald Trump won a convincing victory in the US presidential election and has completed a stunning political comeback to return to the White House.The clarity in itself was welcomed by financial markets who had feared a protracted affair with both parties potentially taking some time to concede defeat.Trump's vocal support for crypt

Recent changes to the UK's listing rules should lead to a host of new names joining the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 indices in the new year, generating more interest in the UK stock market and putting more companies on the radar of investors.This matters to investors whether they own UK stocks directly, have exposure via actively-managed funds or simply track certain parts of the market through an excha

There was a certain degree of investor bemusement last month when shares in US electricity generation company Constellation Energy (CEG:NASDAQ) soared on news technology giant Microsoft (MSFT:NASDAQ) had signed a 20-year power purchase agreement.This was no ordinary deal, however, as it paves the way for the restart of Three Mile Island 1 ? not the reactor which famously melted down in 1979, but a

Stock prices in London were mostly higher at midday Tuesday as US voters are choosing their next president, as data showed UK service sector growth softened but outperformed its flash reading in October.The S&P Global UK services purchasing managers' index declined to 52.0 points in October from 52.4 in September, but beat the flash score of 51.8 points. The PMI composite output index fell to 51.8

The FTSE 100 made a tepid start to the week on Monday, ending just about in the green and falling below earlier highs, as caution prevailed ahead of the US presidential election.The FTSE 100 index closed up 7.09 points, or 0.1%, at 8,184.24. The FTSE 250 ended down 18.45 points, or 0.1%, at 20,461.29, and the AIM All-Share closed down 3.63 points, 0.5%, at 735.37.The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.1% at 8

Shares up 9% to £51.08Reckitt's baby formula business Mead Johnson clearedMead Johnson bought by Reckitt in 2017Shares in Reckitt Benckiser (RKT) skyrocketed on Friday morning after its US baby formula business Mead Johnson was cleared of liability in a US trial linking the consumer goods group's premature-baby formula Enfamil to bowel disease.A state court in St Louis, Missouri on 31 October rej

CEO appointed from withinDan Finley transformed DebenhamsMike Ashley may yet flex his musclesChallenged online fashion retailer Boohoo (BOO:AIM) has shunned major shareholder Frasers' (FRAS) demand to install Mike Ashley as CEO and appointed internal candidate Dan Finley as its new boss instead.Finley has been running Boohoo's fast-growing online department store Debenhams since 2022 and replaces