^FTSE - FTSE 100
| Previous close | 5,480.22 |
| Open | 5,480.22 |
| Volume | 0 |
| Day's range | 5,396.66 - 5,486.29 |
| 52-week range | 4,898.80 - 7,727.50 |
| Avg. volume | 1,076,073,120 |
- Financial Times
Stock rally fades even as oil recovers to $30
A brief market rally faded on Friday, as stocks across Europe and Asia slipped and volatility surged through the oil market. London’s FTSE 100 fell 1.5 per cent in the opening minutes of trading, while the benchmark Stoxx 600 was 0.5 per cent lower.
- Financial Times
Global stocks end higher on hopes of oil price war truce
Global stocks closed mostly higher on Thursday, buoyed by hopes the oil price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia could soon ease, but investors remained concerned about the economic shock caused by the coronavirus outbreak. The US S&P 500 was up 2.3 per cent after having swung between positive and negative territory through the day, while European and most Asian bourses also recorded gains. The Nasdaq Composite was up 1.3 per cent.
- Financial Times
Trade volumes spike at exchanges across Europe
Huge amounts of share trading normally done through banks or anonymous marketplaces shifted back on to exchanges in March, as traders opted not to wait for end-of-day auctions to dump positions. Monthly data showed that activity on exchanges and other public venues surged amid the ferociously volatile month, in which the US benchmark S&P 500 made its quickest ever descent into a bear market, while the FTSE 100 recorded its worst quarter since 1987. Average daily trading volumes across exchanges in Europe soared to €69bn in March, a 60 per cent year-on-year increase, according to data from Cboe Europe.
- FX Empire
The Coronavirus Continues To Impact The Financial Markets. Crude Oil And Equity Markets
Market volatility will continue until the spread of the virus abates. The numbers suggest that we are some way off…
- Financial Times
Auto Trader to raise £200m in share sale after waiving ad fees
Internet car group Auto Trader will issue about £200m of fresh shares to bolster its finances after letting dealerships use its online marketplace for free during the coronavirus lockdown. As the car industry grinds to a halt, with forecourts closed and factories at a standstill, the FTSE 100 group has made advertising to car retailers free during April and delayed payments for March by 30 days. Currently, dealerships pay monthly fees to the site to upload a set number of cars for the 53m consumers, who on average use the Auto Trader website to search for vehicles across the UK every month.
- Financial Times
BAT joins race to develop Covid-19 vaccine
The maker of Lucky Strike and Camel cigarettes has entered the fray of companies trying to develop a vaccine against Covid-19 — by growing a potential antigen in genetically engineered tobacco plants. British American Tobacco on Wednesday said its US biotech subsidiary Kentucky BioProcessing was using “proprietary, fast-growing tobacco plant technology” in pre-clinical testing on animals, making it one of dozens of companies and public sector organisations worldwide racing to develop a vaccine. BAT hopes to produce up to 3m doses a week from June to begin clinical testing.
- Financial Times
Global shares tumble after dire warnings on virus toll
Global equity markets sold off heavily in the first trading session of the new quarter as investors digested a series of grim predictions about the human and economic toll of the coronavirus pandemic. US stocks closed more than 4 per cent lower on Wednesday and debt markets signalled renewed concern about the creditworthiness of corporate and local government borrowers, despite the passage of a $2tn economic stimulus that had encouraged investors in the final days of March. The flight from risk assets followed the worst quarter for markets since the 2008 financial crisis and came after President Donald Trump warned late on Tuesday that up to 240,000 people could die in the US from Covid-19.
- Investing.com
Stocks - Europe Lower; Shutdowns Weigh on Asian Economies
European stock markets traded sharply lower Wednesday, as the latest round of purchasing manager surveys across Asia and Europe kept investors focused on the scale of the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The broader based Stoxx 600 Europe index dropped 2.8%. Factory activity also dropped sharply across most of Asia in March, according to Markit's PMIs, with regional economic powerhouses Japan and South Korea, major exporters to Europe, posting their biggest contractions in about a decade.
- Financial Times
How coronavirus tore through global markets in the first quarter
Global stocks are set for their worst quarter since the 2008 financial crisis under the pressure of the coronavirus pandemic. The wave of stress has been concentrated into six weeks of frenetic trading, as many of the world’s biggest economies went into lockdown and the outbreak shattered investor confidence. Here is how some key asset classes have fared.
- Financial Times
Closing the book on a tumultuous quarter
Global equities ended the quarter mixed, with Wall Street unable to extend its recent string of advances, and another policy initiative from the world’s central bank, the US Federal Reserve. Also, measures of smaller companies such as the S&P 600, have lagged the recovery seen in blue-chips. While some laud the dramatic bounce seen in the latest manufacturing activity data from China (see Quick Hits for why a dollop of caution is required), a hard road awaits for Europe and North America and that is not good news for the global economy and will test sentiment for equities and credit.
- Financial Times
John Parker decries slow progress on ethnic minority board representation
John Parker, author of an influential report into ethnic and cultural diversity and chairman of utility company Pennon, has called on British business to step up their efforts on ethnic minority board representation after painfully slow progress in recent years. “I’ve been a supporter of diversity in boardrooms for a very long time,” said Sir John, a former chairman of five FTSE 100 companies including Anglo American. “Don’t tell me that the talent is not there, you just have to look at our new Chancellor, and there are many more people in the ethnically diverse communities in the UK and overseas.”
- Investing.com
Stocks - Europe Falls Back; Virus Measures in Place for Longer
At 3:35 AM ET, U.S. crude futures traded 6.0% lower, at $20.21 a barrel, on the prospect of lower U.S. fuel demand for longer. The international benchmark Brent contract fell 6.0% to $26.26.
- FX Empire
The Week Ahead – Coronavirus Updates and Hectic Economic Calendar to Keep the Markets Busy
It’s a particularly busy week ahead. Economic data, Brexit negotiations, and updates on the coronavirus will continue to keep the markets on edge.
- Investing.com
StockBeat: Builders, Agents Fall as an Englishman's Home Becomes His Prison
By Geoffrey Smith
- Financial Times
Dobson stepping down as Schroders chairman
City grandee Michael Dobson is stepping down as chairman of Schroders, ending a two-decade reign at the helm of the FTSE 100 investment manager that counts the Queen among its clients. In a note in Schroders’ annual report published on Friday, Mr Dobson said: “During 2020, we will continue to review board composition and succession planning.” A Schroders spokesperson said there is “no set timetable” and said that Mr Dobson remains chairman until a successor is appointed.
- Investing.com
Stocks - Europe Slips After Recent Gains as Virus Cases Mount
European stock markets traded lower Friday, with investors taking stock after recent hefty gains and as the coronavirus pandemic continues to reap damage throughout the region. The broader based Stoxx 600 Europe index dropped 2.5%. The number of Covid-19 infections have continued to mount worldwide, to well above 500,000, but the news from Italy, the epicenter of the outbreak in Europe, has been disappointing as infections surged Thursday by 6,153, the most in five days.
- Investing.com
Stocks - Europe Weakens; Policymakers in The Spotlight
European stock markets pushed lower Thursday, amid concerns about the extent of the economic damage caused by coronavirus pandemic as investors still wait for action from policy makers. The broader based Stoxx 600 Europe index dropped 1.0%. The latest economic releases in Europe showed German consumer morale hitting its lowest level since 2009 while French business confidence plunged at a record pace in March, to its lowest since 2014.
- Financial Times
Markets Now - Wednesday 25th March 2020
Money market funds saw record inflows in March as risk assets collapsed. Continued caution is thus warranted but month-end pension funds’ rebalancing following the extreme equity/bond underperformance in Q1, along with decisive central banks’ action,could provide a near-term backstop to the markets and reduce volatility. Retail has not capitulated either, given resilient inflows to passive equity funds, although some popular US ETFs saw big redemptions last week.
- FX Empire
GBP/USD Makes a Run Towards the 1.20 Handle
The British pound is recovering against the greenback as an expected US fiscal stimulus package has taken the steam out of the dollar rally.
- Investing.com
Stocks - Europe Pushes Higher on Stimulus Agreement
European stock markets pushed firmly higher Wednesday, with investors breathing a sign of relief that U.S. policymakers have managed to come together to deliver a massive rescue package to bolster the country’s beleaguered economy. Shares in German conglomerate Thyssenkrupp (DE:TKAG) rose over 20% after saying it would cut 3,000 jobs at its steel unit by 2026, with no forced layoffs until March 31, 2026, as part of a wage deal struck with powerful labor union IG Metall.
- Investing.com
Stocks - Europe Continues Higher Amid Fresh U.S. Stimulus Hopes
European stock markets are set to open positively Wednesday, continuing Tuesday’s sharp ride higher, on the expectation that U.S. policymakers will finally deliver a massive rescue package to bolster the country’s beleaguered economy. At 3:20 ET (0720 GMT), the DAX futures contract in Germany traded 1.9% higher. {{167|France's CAC 40 futures were up 1.6%, while the FTSE 100 futures contract in the U.K. rose 2.1%.
