FTSE 100 Live: Index Opens Higher Amid Fall in Oil Prices

The FTSE 100 opened 151 points higher to 10,371 in opening trades, more than wiping out all the losses from yesterday. This comes amid a fall in oil prices and news of a peace deal in the Middle East. Brent Crude trades at $106.5, down 3.05% for the second consecutive day, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) stands at $98.62, down 3.57%. 

Gainers & Losers

Fresnillo surged 5.30% to £3,280, while Anglo American advanced 5.26% to £3,752 and Endeavour Mining gained 4.34% to £4,471.

Diageo also climbed 4.26% to £1,538, while Standard Chartered added 4.05% to £1,893 and Antofagasta edged higher by 4% to £3,704.

On the downside, RELX declined 1.16% to £2,643, while Smith & Nephew fell 2.11% to £1,134.50 and BP dropped 1.75% to £562.60.

Among others, Shell slipped 0.66% to £3,290.50, while Pershing Square eased 0.34% to £4,056 and London Stock Exchange Group edged down 0.13% to £9,566.

Next Increases Profit Guidance 

Next has upgraded its full-year profit guidance after a strong start to the year. The clothes retailer said full-price sales jumped 6.2% in the first quarter, ahead of its 4% forecast and generating an extra £28 million of revenue. 

This added £8 million to profit, lifting full-year guidance for pre-tax profit to £1.218 billion from £1.21 billion.

Trainline’s Revenue Surged

Ticketing app Trainline reported an increase in revenue in its full-year results. The company saw revenue jump 2% to £453 million in the year that ended in February, after group ticket sales increased 7% to £6.3 billion. 

Profit before tax increased 11% to £177 million. Basic earnings per share jumped 48% to £19.4 from £13.1. The group also benefited from a rise in digital railcard customers, increasing 16% to 2.7 million. 

The group forecasts net ticket sales of between £6.2 billion and £6.4 billion in the financial year 2027.

Smith & Nephew Declines 

Shares of Smith & Nephew declined despite the company announcing a new $500 million (£368 million) share buyback. The company posted a 6.6% rise in turnover to $1.5 billion in the first quarter of the year. 

However, the business suffered a 7.2% slump in sales. It said customer demand would be weighted towards the second half of the year. Shares fell 3.7% to £1,116. The stock is down by 8.3% since the start of the year. 

Also Read: Stock Market Today: Sensex Rises 253 Points, Nifty50 Holds 24,129 

Global Market View

In the US, stocks closed higher, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq climbing 0.8% and 1% to fresh highs, led by strength in the tech sector. The Dow Jones rose 0.7%.

In Asia, the Kospi surged 6.7% to 7,407 points, breaking 7,000 for the first time in its history. Taiwan’s TAIEX index jumped 0.9%, fueled by the surge in AI stocks. In China, the mainland’s CSI 300 increased 1.2%, while Shanghai’s Composite rose 0.8%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 0.9%. In India, the Sensex is up 0.12%, and the Nifty 50 is up 0.29%.