Stocks in London closed mostly lower on Wednesday, pulled back amid reports that US President Donald Trump may soon remove Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell from the role. London's blue-chip index had earlier traded in the green, shrugging aside stronger-than-expected inflation data. The FTSE 100 index closed down 11.77 points, 0.1%, at 8,926.55. It had earlier traded as high as 8,972.29....

Burberry and Diageo facing tariffs Vodafone executives buy en masse AO and M&S directors lighten up Encouragingly, it seems more directors of UK firms have been buying their companies' stock than selling over the last few weeks, supporting the thesis that UK equities are undervalued on a relative basis, even if the outlook for their businesses is somewhat clouded by tariff concerns. INSIDER...

Following on the heels of AIM's 30th anniversary last month, this week marks the 90th anniversary of the FT30 index (on 1 July, to be precise). Never heard of it, you say? Founded in 1935 by the Financial News, it was originally called the Financial News 30-Share Index before changing its name to the FT30 in 1945 after the newspaper merged with the Financial Times. The index is similar to the...

London's blue chip index closed out Tuesday in positive territory as Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey indicated rates will continue on their downward trajectory, while Fed Chair Jerome Powell left his options open. The FTSE 100 index closed up 24.37 points, 0.3%, at 8,785.33. The FTSE 250 was 116.90 points higher, 0.5%, at 21,743.16, while the AIM All-Share added 2.29 points, 0.3%, at...

Full-year return of 7.5% Equity exposure increased Gold exposure reduced Capital preservation trust Personal Assets (PNL) delivered a total return in NAV (net asset value) per share of 7.5% in the year to 30 April, in line with the FTSE All-Share, despite maintaining a low equity exposure and high liquidity. The shares nudged up 0.5% to 515p and are ahead by around 6% over the last year...

Our portfolio picks for 2025 haven't fared too well in the first half of the year, returning 0.6% compared to a gain of 6.1% from the FTSE All-Share index as of 9 June. It wasn't all bad news, however, as stocks like defence technology group Cohort (CHRT:AIM), premium mixer-maker Fevertree Drinks (FEVR:AIM), airline and package holiday provider Jet2 (JET2:AIM) and infrastructure and...

The Nasdaq 100 index has been one of the best performing indices of the last 25 years, returning 8.8% since January 2000. To put that in pounds and pence, £10,000 invested in the index would now be worth £84,473, even throwing some shade on the broader US stock market in the form of the S&P 500, which is itself no slouch on the performance front. The Nasdaq 100 index is comprised of the...

Veteran stockpicker Nick Train has upped his stake (30 May) in Finsbury Growth & Income Trust (FGT) to 3.92% in a show of confidence in the well-followed fund's long-run prospects. The purchase followed results (29 May) for the half to 31 March 2025 which revealed another period of underperformance, the company's net asset value (NAV) total return of 2.1% lagging the 4.1% rise in the benchmark...

Q3 organic sales up 5.9% Full-year guidance reiterated $500 million cost-cutting programme Despite a tough market backdrop, alcoholic drinks behemoth Diageo (DGE) delivered a tasty 5.9% jump in third-quarter organic sales, albeit one partially inflated by pre-tariff order phasing. There was also relief as the Johnnie Walker-to-Smirnoff purveyor reiterated its full-year 2025 organic sales and...

Ongoing weakness in Asian demand Spirits sales especially poor -17% Diageo owns 34% of Moet-Hennessy Investors hoping for a rebound in luxury stocks faced disappointment after France's LVMH (MC:EPA) posted weaker-than-expected first-quarter sales due mainly to softer demand in Asia. LVMH shares fell €35 or 7% to a four-year low of €495, dragging with them shares in British luxury...

European banking and mining stocks bore the brunt of the selloff in morning trading on Friday (4 April) as China announced 34% retaliatory tariffs on US imports, sparking fears of a global trade war.UK banks Barclays (BARC), NatWest (NWG), Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) were some of the biggest fallers ? down 9.12%, 8.99% and 7.32% respectively on the day and global mining companies Glencore...

Investors across Europe held back on Wednesday as markets awaited clarity from Washington on tariffs, with mixed moves in London reflecting caution despite a late bounce in mid-caps.The FTSE 100 index ended down 26.32 points, 0.3%, at 8,608.48. It had traded as low as 8,548.32.The FTSE 250 climbed 58.77 points, 0.3%, at 19,649.63, and the AIM All-Share declined 2.61 points, 0.4%, at 685.77.The...

The end of the tax year is now just a couple of weeks away so if you want to make use of any remaining ISA allowance your window to do so is rapidly closing.In this article the Shares team has put its collective heads together to identify a quintet of funds which we think are worthy of inclusion as part of a diversified portfolio. Some of these names may already be familiar but others are...

Diageo director buys on five-year lowB&M director buys 70,053 sharesLBG Media directors snap up stockA person closely associated with Dan Mobley - a member of the executive committee at Diageo (DGE) - Diana Mobley has bought 2,280 shares at £21.81 for a total value of £49,727 on 14 February.The alcoholic drinks giant's shares recently took a turn for the worse dropping to a five-year low of...

In a fitting irony for our high-tech 21st century world, it was an old-fashioned technology which brought markets back from the brink on 3 February after Donald Trump's telephone conversations with the presidents of Mexico and Canada resulted in planned 25% tariffs being delayed by a month.Mexico agreed to station 10,000 members of its National Guard on the border and Canada deployed Canadian...

With a sense of anticipation Shares scurried along to Finsbury Growth & Income Trust's (FGT) latest AGM (annual general meeting) at London's Guildhall on a wet and windy day (28 January), where shareholders turned up in droves and one or two left the assembled board members squirming in their seats.While the total return-focused trust's long-run record under star manager Nick Train remains...

Organic sales improvementOutlook clouded by tariffsMedium-term guidance withdrawnAlcoholic drinks giant Diageo (DGE) served up a return to organic growth for the first half as a palate-pleasing performance from the iconic Guinness brand, a shoot-the-lights-out showing from tequila label Don Julio and price increases helped to offset a modest decline in volumes.There was also relief as Diageo...

Stock prices in Europe opened lower on Tuesday, amid low risk sentiment, as investors track developments in a US and China trade spat.The FTSE 100 index fell 57.72 points, 0.7%, at 8,525.84. The FTSE 250 shed 142.70 points, 0.7%, at 20,569.06. The AIM All-Share fell 1.40 points, 0.2%, at 710.73.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.6% at 853.75, the Cboe UK 250 fell 0.7% at 17,968.56, and the Cboe Small...

Prevailing negative sentiment towards alcoholic drinks companies reflects tariff and regulation risk, the fact drinkers' disposable incomes are under pressure and the younger demographic is quaffing less alcohol, as well as worries over the demand impact of weight loss drugs on the sector.Little wonder then that global beverages behemoth Diageo's (DGE) shares have underperformed the FTSE 100...

The FTSE 100 fell slightly on Wednesday, as international earners put pressure on the index and as easyJet sank on a 'woolly' update.The FTSE 100 index fell just 3.16 points at 8,545.13. The FTSE 250 lost 15.43 points, 0.1%, at 20,580.30, and the AIM All-Share ended up 1.89 points, 0.3%, at 721.00.The Cboe UK 100 lost 0.1% at 856.60, the Cboe UK 250 fell 0.2% at 17,962.96, and the Cboe Small...