The FTSE 100 was set to end the week on a high after trading above 9,000 in very early trade on Friday, following another strong session for US equities overnight.
London’s leading index faded the early rally to trade at 8,982 at the time of writing. The current all-time closing high stands at 9,000.
The FTSE 100 jumped on the coat tails of another record high for US stocks, which was driven by strong economic data and a continued rally in leading tech stocks.
“Across the pond, we had the latest US retail sales figures yesterday, which once again makes me recall the old adage ‘never bet against the US consumer’,” explained Michael Brown Senior Research Strategist at Pepperstone.
“Headline sales rose by a healthy 0.6% MoM in June, while the all-important control group metric, which feeds into the GDP figures, rose by a better than expected 0.5% MoM. Clearly, very solid figures, that again point to the underlying resilience of the US economy, despite ongoing trade uncertainty.”
In addition to the strong US economic data, the FTSE 100 was boosted by several company-specific developments.
“Streamlining has been the order of the day with oil giant BP continuing its strategic refocus with an agreement to dispose of its US onshore wind business, BP Wind in which the group has claims to 1.3GW of generating capacity,” explained Derren Nathan, head of equity research, Hargreaves Lansdown.
“Health and hygiene company Reckitt, the company behind the likes of Dettol, Durex and Nurofen is to dispose of its Essential Home division in a deal worth up to $4.8bn which will leave it with a non-controlling stake of 30% in brands such as Cillit Bang, Calgon and Airwick.”
BP shares rose 1.5% as Reckitts gained 1.8%.
Mining shares were also among the risers, underscoring the risk-on tone to trade. Rio Tinto rose 1.4% and Glencore ticked 1.2% higher.
GSK was the FTSE 100’s top faller after the US FDA voted against the overall benefit/risk profile of its Blenrep blood cancer drug. GSK shares fell 5%.