FTSE 100 live: London markets extend rally on open as earnings take centre stage

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 US stock market saw strong gains, with the S&P 500 up 1.17 per cent to 5,069.41 points, the Nasdaq Composite rising 1.59 per cent to 15,696.64, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbing 0.70 per cent to 38,494.32. 

In Asia, South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.9 per cent with Hanwha Engine shares up 12.2 per cent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.23 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei N225 surged over 2 per cent, China’s CSI300 rose 0.17 per cent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.7 per cent. 

Currency markets saw the US dollar index dip by 0.04 per cent to 105.63, while the Japanese yen remained near its recent low at 154.79 per dollar. The Australian dollar strengthened by 0.5 per cent to A$0.65 after Australia reported slightly higher-than-expected first-quarter inflation.  

Oil prices remained stable, with US crude at $83.33 per barrel and Brent at $88.38, showing a minor 0.05 per cent decrease.  

Gold traded flat at $2,321.42 per ounce, while bitcoin rose by 0.41 per cent to $66,630. 

Tesla aims to speed up the launch of ‘more affordable’ electric car models to boost investor confidence after a 9 per cent revenue drop in the first quarter. This led to Tesla’s stock surging over 13 per cent in after-hours trading, rebounding from its lowest point in 15 months 

The China Chamber of Commerce to the EU criticized a surprise inspection by European Commission authorities on a Chinese security equipment supplier in the Netherlands and Poland. 

Australia’s first-quarter consumer price inflation rose 1 per cent, easing annual CPI inflation to 3.6 per cent from 4.1 per cent. March’s CPI increased by 3.5 per cent from the previous year, while the trimmed mean rose 1 per cent in the quarter but slowed to 4 per cent annually from 4.2 per cent. 

Big-name companies like Meta Platforms, Boeing, IBM, and Intel will announce their latest earnings today. Investors are also watching Lloyds’ first-quarter financials.  

Traders are closely monitoring upcoming US GDP and March’s US personal consumption expenditure data, important for predicting future interest rates.