The FTSE 100 rose on Wednesday with strong oil shares helping the index rise after Brent oil futures touched $113 per barrel as the ongoing tragedy in Ukraine caused supply concerns.
The FTSE 100 had climbed 0.6% in early afternoon trade on Wednesday.
“The FTSE 100 made its latest attempt at a rebound on Wednesday despite the ongoing conflict in Ukraine,” says AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.
“Index heavyweights BP and Shell were markedly higher as oil prices moved to eight-year highs above $110 per barrel.”
“The latest surge in crude came despite the International Energy Agency releasing barrels from its emergency reserves – demonstrating relative impotence in the face of the disruption to supply caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”
BP and Shell are significant components of the FTSE 100 and have added a considerable number of points to the index.
Evraz hit again
The top fallers in the FTSE 100 included Evraz, Coca-Cola HBC AG and The Royal Mail.
Evraz continued trend to the downside trading as low as 67p having touched 127p. The company’s shares have fallen a total of 83% since the start of 2022, with the steel producer facing a reported upcoming exit from the FTSE 100.
Coca-Cola HBC fell by 5.84% to a share price of 1,668.75p. The drinks producer recently shut down its operations in Ukraine, and has seen uncertainty concerning the immediate future of its supplies.
The Royal Mail dropped by 3.79% to a share price of 373.1p. Liberum Capital recently downgraded the stock to a sell ranking in light of the company’s upcoming talks with the Communications Union which is estimated to see a 7.8% pay claim submitted in line with inflation rates.
Polymetal
Polymetal share were 8% higher at the time of writing after the gold miner released full years earnings and bounced back from heavy selling due to their exposure to Russia.
“Publication of Polymetal’s financial performance for 2021 is a sideshow event as far as the market is concerned,” said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.
“Investors are more concerned about how sanctions on Russia might impact the business and what that would mean for dividends, and indeed the future of Polymetal’s London stock market listing. There is also a moral dilemma as Western investors question if they should still be owning a slice of a Russian business.”
Persimmon
Persimmon’s stock rose more than 4% after the business announced positive financial results for 2021 on Wednesday.
Persimmons profits increased from £863m in 2020 to £973m in 2021, with total group revenues of £3.6bn.
Persimmon said they would make two dividend payments of 125p and 110p per share in the coming meaning Persimmon shares are yielding nearly 10%.
In 2021, the company sold 14,551 homes, a 7.2% increase over 2020, with selling prices climbing 2.8 percent to £237,000.