UK Market: The UK stock market was trading in the negative territory on Friday, with the blue-chip FTSE100 index losing around 1 per cent. The came with the Office for National Statistics reporting a fall of 1.4% in September’s retail sales volumes. This was much greater than the predicted 0.5% fall and was mainly driven by reduced household spending amid rising costs. Additionally, GfK’s consumer confidence index remained close to a record-low level this month, at -47. In a further blow, it was revealed that the public sector borrowing of the UK reached £20 billion in September, much higher than the anticipated £17.1 billion.
GSK plc (LON: GSK): The shares of the leading British pharma business, GSK plc, were up by 1.00%, with a day’s high of GBX 1,378.60. The company has recently announced a collaboration with Tempus in to speed up its R&D.
AstraZeneca plc (LON: AZN): The shares of the UK-based pharmaceutical giant, AstraZeneca plc, were up by 0.07%, with a day’s high of GBX 9,663.00. The company has declared that its drug Evusheld, which is under trials, may potentially beat Covid variants.
Intercontinental Hotels Group plc (LON: IHG): The shares of the global hospitality business, Intercontinental Hotels Group plc, were down by 4.58%, with a day’s low of GBX 4,354.00. The company has exceeded its pre-pandemic revenues, but it still carries a huge debt burden.
US Markets: The US market is likely to get a sluggish start, as indicated by the futures indices. S&P 500 future was down by 26.25 points or 0.71% at 3,649.25, while the Dow Jones 30 future was down by 0.63% or 192 points at 30,163.00. Meanwhile, the technology-heavy index Nasdaq Composite future was also down by 1.08% or 119.25 points, at 10,969.00. (At the time of writing – 8:30 AM ET).
The shares of the financial services company, American Express (AXP), were down by 4.7% in the premarket trading session. This came with the company reporting higher-than-expected revenues and profits for the quarter.
The shares of the hospital operator, Tenet Healthcare (THC), were down by 18% in the premarket trading session. This came with the company reporting weaker-than-expected prospects after battling with a cyber-attack this year.
European Indices Performance (at the time of writing):
FTSE 100 Index One Year Performance (as on 21 October)
(Source: Refinitiv)
Top 3 Volume Stocks in FTSE 100*: Lloyds Banking Group plc (LLOY), Vodafone Group plc (VOD), Glencore plc (GLEN)
Top 3 sectors traded in red*: Consumer Cyclicals (-2.06%), Technology (-1.90%), Industrials (-1.88%)
London Stock Exchange: Stocks Performance (at the time of writing):
Crude Oil Future Prices*: Brent future crude oil (future) price and WTI crude oil (future) price were hovering at $92.36/barrel and $84.45/barrel, respectively.
Gold Price*: Gold price was quoting at US$ 1,623.35 per ounce, down by 0.82% against the prior day closing.
Currency Rates*: GBP to USD: 1.1075; EUR to USD: 0.9716
Bond Yields*: US 10-Year Treasury yield: 4.320%; UK 10-Year Government Bond yield: 4.1280%
*At the time of writing