FTSE 100 Live 15 November: GDP disappoints, fresh GSK slump offsets Land Securities upgrade

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FTSE 100 Live (Evening Standard)
FTSE 100 Live (Evening Standard)

Jitters over the health of the UK economy have been fuelled by today’s weaker-than-expected GDP release.

September’s 0.1% contraction meant the UK grew by just 0.1% in the third quarter, down from 0.5% in the second quarter.

The rate is set to improve in the current quarter but the weakness may fuel hopes of another interest rate cut in December.

FTSE 100 Live Friday

  • GDP disappoints in third quarter

  • Land Securities lifts earnings guidance

  • TT Electronics rejects bid approaches

Market update: GSK and Astra lower in flat FTSE 100, Whitbread hit by downgrade

10:01 , Graeme Evans

Fresh selling of GSK and AstraZeneca shares and a lacklustre set of GDP figures today contributed to a downbeat session for London’s FTSE 100 index.

The latest weakness in the drugs sector came after Donald Trump last night announced vaccine-sceptic Robert F Kennedy Jr as his health secretary pick.

GSK touched a fresh low for the year of 1299p early in the session before settling 2% or 29.5p lower at 1324p. The fall for AstraZeneca of 288p to 10,004p unwound the recovery seen after Tuesday’s third quarter results.

A weak handover from Wall Street on the back of worries that US interest rates will take longer to fall also dampened the mood.

The FTSE 100 index initially fell by 30 points before returning to its opening mark at 8068, meaning the top flight has barely changed over the week.

One of the best performances came from Land Securities, which rose 2.5% or 14.5p to 594.5p after half-year results included upgraded earnings guidance.

Chief executive Mark Allan said demand for space remains robust and that investment market activity has started to pick up. The shares are still 16% lower this year.

Oil’s latest price fall boosted interest in easyJet, which rose 12.6p to 530p, while Aviva lifted 5.4p to extend gains since Thursday’s update to 6% at 480.8p.

Whitbread fell 37p to 2905p after analysts at Barclays removed their Overweight stance on the Premier Inn business and lowered their price target to 3160p.

Today’s disappointing update on the UK economy will have done little for Whitbread sentiment after September’s 0.1% contraction contributed to GDP growth of just 0,1% in the third quarter.

The domestic-focused FTSE 250 index fell 35.71 points to 20,487.10.

Burberry consolidated yesterday’s gains of 19% after new boss Joshua Schulman unveiled a turnaround plan focused on the group’s British heritage.

The shares were 2.4p higher this morning at 870.4p after UBS analysts removed their Sell stance and lifted the bank’s price target from 410p to 975p.

They said: “Burberry’s new strategy focused on its roots can stabilise the business and improve sales momentum in the short term, which will matter the most despite our scepticism around margins.”