Shares regain lost ground, but fail to make up for bruising Tuesday
Driven by financial stocks – including Abrdn and Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust – the FTSE 100 closed the day up 1.2%.
Your support helps us to tell the story
This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.
The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.
Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.
London’s top shares bounced back on Wednesday from a bruising session the day before – but failed to make up even half of their lost ground.
Driven by financial stocks – including Abrdn and Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust – the FTSE 100 closed the day up 1.2%.
But the 82.3 point rise, leaving the index at 7,107.77, was not enough to offset the 207 points it lost on Tuesday.
“The day has seen European markets put their best foot forward once again, in the hope that Wall Street will follow suit,” said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.
In Germany the Dax gained 1.6%, while the Cac 40 in Paris rose by 2%.
“While stocks have avoided sustained falls after Tuesday’s shaky session, the mood remains febrile.
“The drop in the euro and weakness in yields shows that investors remain very nervous about the economic prospects of the global economy, and the opportunistic bargain hunting in stocks may not have much staying power.”
In New York, the S&P 500 had dropped 0.5%, while the Dow Jones was trading down 0.4% shortly after markets closed in Europe.
On currency markets, the pound dropped 0.08% to 1.19 dollars, and rose 0.16% to 1.1703 euros.
Mr Beauchamp said: “The British prime minister might be heading rapidly towards his resignation, despite his protestations to the contrary, but the pound seems relatively steady.
“Losses have been pared back, and while the currency has dropped sharply this looks more like a function of dollar strength, given the similar weakness for the euro against the greenback.
“Boris’ apparently-imminent defenestration might not have much impact, since it is unlikely to provoke a general election.
“Even if it did, without Jeremy Corbyn to scare investors, markets seem much more sanguine about a change of government than was the case in 2019.”
In company news, train ticket seller Trainline saw its shares rise by more than a fifth after it upped its sales outlook.
The company said that demand for travel has recovered in Europe as US tourists start coming back across the Atlantic.
Net ticket sales rose 16% in the four months to the end of June compared to the same period two years ago.
Full year sales are expected to be between 18% and 27%.
Elsewhere, AO World saw its shares drop 8.5% after it announced plans to raise £40 million from shareholders amid fears over its financial health.
The raise will boost its balance sheet, the online retailer of electricals said.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust, up 49.8p to 776p, Abrdn, up 7.6p to 156.55p, Hargreaves Lansdown, up 35.2p to 798.4p, JD Sports, up 5.2p to 118.35p, and Intermediate Capital Group, up 58p to 1,342.5p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Fresnillo, down 41.2p to 685.6p, Harbour Energy, down 17.7p to 298.5p, Standard Chartered, down 13.8p to 578.2p, Shell, down 41.8p to 1,974.2p, and BP, down 4.7p to 368.65p.