The FTSE 100 edged up to 6,794 on Tuesday morning trading as the pound weakened against other currencies.
“As sterling weakened against dollar and euro alike – cable felt half a percent, while the pound shed 0.4% against its single currency rival – the FTSE 100 was free to push back towards 6,800,” says Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex.
“A strong finish to trading in the US overnight and robust trading in Asia helped give the FTSE 100 a lift on Tuesday, shaking off any hangover from the day before and framing the day’s narrative around whether the index can regain the 6,800 mantle it briefly attained on Monday,” added AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.
As inflation concerns somewhat ease, attention will turn to the UK vaccine roll-out in the hope of a return to normality.
FTSE 100 Top Movers
AstraZeneca (3.5%), Rolls-Royce (3.01%) and British Land Co (2.85%) headed up the the FTSE 100 at the time of writing on Tuesday morning.
At the other end of the FTSE 100, Anglo American (-2%), Natwest (-1.74%) and Burberry (-1.28%) are the day’s biggest fallers so far.
Greggs
Greggs reported its first loss in 36 years during 2020 as sales dropped by a third following nationwide lockdown measures. The board of the Newcastle-based company confirmed a pre-tax loss of £13.7m in 2020 with sales dropping from £1.17bn in 2019 to £811.3m.
Greggs also said that the beginning of 2021 had been challenging for the baker. Over the same 10 week period in 2019, before lockdowns came into full affect, sales are down by 28.8%.
Antofagasta
Antofagasta on Tuesday confirmed a 6% rise in its net profit during 2020 as well as raising its dividend for 2020. The mining giant’s net profit reached $893.9m, up from $843.1m in 2019. Lower costs and stronger prices more than offset a fall in copper production levels.
Antofagasta’s EBITDA increased by 12% to $2.74bn ahead of analysts’ expectations of $2.7bn. The FTSE 100 company announced a final dividend of 48.5 cents per share, bringing the full-year number to 54.7 cents, and up from 50.9 cents in 2019.
