FTSE 100 live: London higher as low valuations drive momentum

The latest updates on the FTSE 100 and London’s financial markets from City A.M.’s newsroom in the heart of the City of London.

Overnight, the Dow Jones rose by 0.32 per cent to 39,558.11 points, while the S&P 500 gained 0.48 per cent to close at 5,246.68, and the Nasdaq Composite surged 0.75 per cent to 16,511.18. 

All seven major stocks rose, Tesla leading with a 3.3 per cent gain. Technology stocks led with a 0.9 per cent increase, while consumer staples dipped 0.2 per cent. 

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei N225 rose 0.58 per cent, while Chinese stocks opened lower, with the CSI300 down 0.16 per cent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropping 0.22 per cent.  

Japan and Australia saw gains, but Hong Kong’s market was quiet due to a holiday. 

BHP Group’s Australian stock surged 2.4 per cent after Anglo American, its takeover target, announced a defensive breakup plan in response to a $43 billion bid. 

The dollar index remained stable at 105.01. The yen traded at 156.36 per dollar, hitting a two-week low of 156.80 earlier amidst speculation of Japanese authority interventions. 

In the commodities market, oil prices rose slightly due to wildfires in Canada’s oil sands and anticipated declines in US crude oil and gasoline inventories. US crude reached $78.59 per barrel, up 0.73 per cent, while Brent crude was at $82.89 per barrel, up 0.62 per cent.  

Spot gold remained relatively unchanged at $2,357 per ounce. 

China’s central bank maintained its key rate steady and extended medium-term loans due Wednesday as expected. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) announced it would keep the interest rate on 125 billion yuan of one-year MLF loans unchanged at 2.50 per cent. 

Biden has levied hefty tariffs on Chinese goods, spanning electric vehicles, batteries, solar cells, steel, aluminium, and medical equipment. This reverses some Trump policies and heightens tensions.  

Biden keeps some tariffs and increases others, like quadrupling electric vehicle tariffs to over 100 per cent and doubling semiconductor tariffs to 50 per cent. 

Sony’s stock prices experienced a significant surge of up to 12 per cent on Wednesday morning following the announcement of impressive earnings, a proposed stock split, and a share buyback totaling ¥250 billion. 

Wednesday looms large as investors await the pivotal US consumer price report, the week’s primary risk event. Expectations suggest a slight dip in April’s year-on-year consumer price increase to 3.4 per cent, while core CPI gains are projected to ease from 3.8 per cent to 3.6 per cent.  

Additionally, the focus remains on April’s US retail sales data. Eurostat will release first-quarter employment and GDP figures for the euro area, alongside March’s industrial production data. 

However, the UK doesn’t have any major economic releases scheduled for the day. 

Investors are keeping an eye on Burberry’s share price after its earnings report for the 2024 fiscal year.

It’s worth noting that markets in Hong Kong, Macau, and South Korea will be closed to mark Buddha’s birthday.