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The FTSE 100 opened higher on Wednesday, lifted by strength in miners, upbeat corporate results from GSK and Next, and rising copper prices. At the press time, FTSE 100 is up 38 points or 0.40%, extending the index’s rally from the previous session, when it closed at 9,696.74.
The mining sector boosted the FTSE after copper prices hit a new all-time high above $11,140 per tonne, driven by global supply disruptions, including production issues at Freeport-McMoRan’s Grasberg mine in Indonesia and reduced output guidance from Anglo American.
Shares of Glencore rose 5.9% to £372.20, Fresnillo gained 2.9% to £2,212, and Anglo American climbed nearly 1.94% to £2,947, while Endeavour Mining gained 2.09% to £3,128.
Among the losers, Diploma fell 1.69%, leading the declines, followed by Ashtead Group, down 1.13%. InterContinental Hotels Group slipped 0.85%, while London Stock Exchange Group edged 0.56% lower, reflecting mild profit-taking.
Next surged over 6.23% to £14,240 after the clothing retailer raised its full-year profit guidance. The company reported better-than-expected third-quarter sales, with sales up by 10.5% YoY for the 13 weeks ending October 25, above the earlier forecast of 4.5%.
UK sales rose 5.4%, outperforming expectations as improved stock levels supported growth. Next also announced plans to return surplus cash to shareholders.
GSK jumped 4.02% to 1,710 after the third-quarter revenues and earnings came in higher than expected.
Group revenue rose 7% to £8.55 billion, exceeding the estimate of £8.28 billion. Adjusted earnings per share came in at £55, above the market expectations of £47.
GSK now expects turnover growth of 6-7%, compared to its earlier forecast of 3-5%, while core operating profit growth is revised to 9-11%, up from 6-8%.
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Swiss lender UBS reported a 74% surge in third-quarter net profit to $2.5 billion, beating forecasts. The results included $668 million in litigation reserve releases related to legacy Credit Suisse legal cases.
UBS said it has achieved $10 billion of its targeted $13 billion in cost savings, with over two-thirds of Swiss client accounts successfully migrated following the 2023 acquisition of Credit Suisse.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 1.16% as tech stocks rallied. Wall Street stocks closed higher last night amid renewed hopes for a US-China trade deal. The Dow Jones advanced 0.3%, the S&P 500 added 0.2%, and the Nasdaq jumped 0.9%.
