The FTSE 100 was on the verge of a record high on Wednesday as the index made another measured move to the upside amid hopes the US and China would strike a trade agreement.

London’s leading index was 0.1% higher at 8,858 at the time of writing after trading above 8,880 earlier in the session. Early gains we sold into as investors braced for the UK government’s spending review.

“The FTSE 100 looks like it might attain the closing high it missed by a whisker yesterday as positive news on trade talks between the US and China boosted sentiment,” says AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.

“Banks, housebuilders and miners did the heavy lifting for the index with the retail sector proving a drag on Wednesday morning after weak sales data yesterday.

“US and China have agreed a framework trade deal as they ironed out some difference over export controls on rare earths and technology.”

Optimism around a trade deal helped London’s China-focused stocks once more. Prudential was the top riser with a gain of 2.4%, while miners Glencore and Rio Tinto gained on the session.

Housebuilders were also in focus as investors continued to add the sector to their portfolios following poor economic data that increased bets on interest rate cuts and an upbeat assessment of trade by peer Bellway yesterday.

The sector received another boost from Ibstock’s update that highlighted growing demand for bricks during the first half of the year. FTSE 250 Ibstock’s shares sank as rising costs offset the good news about improving demand.

BT shares were 2% on reports by the Telegraph that the group was considering making a bid for TalkTalk, one of OpenReach’s biggest customers.

Adsure Services has issued an encouraging update on its proprietary artificial intelligence tool, ‘TIAA Insight’, designed to deliver efficiencies across its operating subsidiary, TIAA Ltd.

The internal audit and business assurance firm is developing an AI tool that will first augment their internal processes before the company potentially explores licensing the software.

In 2023, Adsure Services received an Innovate UK grant to research and develop an artificial intelligence large language model targeted at improving the efficiency with which they carry out work for government-funded organisations. 

The model is being developed using only TIAA data to provide the optimal outcome for the company’s audit operatives. Specialist and internally built closed-source large language models (LLMs) are becoming increasingly popular because they ensure the privacy of the data used to train them. 

TIAA Insight is trained on vast data sets collated by Adsure Services’ operating subsidiary, TIAA Ltd, as opposed to the open internet, which is typical of models such as ChatGPT.

Privacy and securitty is of the utmost importance for Adsure Services given the nature of the work they carry out for their government-funded organisation clients, such as emergency services, education institutions and housing associations.

While the company hasn’t provided any specific details on the processes TIAA Insight will be deployed to carry out, it has alluded to early success with the tool entering a testing stage. 

“Through our ongoing investment in market leading technology, Adsure will be able to drive efficiencies within its core service lines and add greater value to our customers,” said Kevin Limn, CEO of Adsure Services.

“We are committed to being the provider of choice to the UK public sector, and this evolution in our technological capabilities will strengthen our ability to achieve this ambition.”

The successful deployment of the tool will likely translate into improved margins, although the company has yet to provide any guidance on this.

A licensed software product could open up very attractive revenue streams.

Adsure Services’ revenues grew 19% to over £5m in the first half of their financial year.

Shares in brick maker Ibstock were under pressure on Wednesday after the company announced rising fixed costs attributed to increasing capacity.

Ibstock shares were down 14% at the time of writing. 

If it had not been for the rising costs base, Ibstock’s trading statement would have been very well received. Volumes in the first half of the year are expected to far outstrip those of the same period last year. The company has been dogged by slow housing sales, which are now eventually picking up.

However, rising cost inflation is weighing on margins and is proving to be a major disappointment for investors. The company now sees adjusted EBITDA in the range of £77 million to £82 million, flat on last year’s £79 million.

“Ibstock continues to build momentum in 2025, with an increase in residential construction leading to an uplift in demand for the brickmaker’s products. As a result, first-half sales volumes look set to land materially ahead of the prior year,” said Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown.

“But it’s not all good news. As Ibstock’s been firing up the kilns used to make the bricks and adding back capacity at several of its factories, its fixed costs have soared.

“Until demand and production ramp up further, operations won’t be as efficient as the group would like, and profitability is getting squeezed in the meantime. On top of that, average selling prices have been hurt by a shift in mix towards newbuild markets, which have recovered quicker than the broader construction market. Again, that’s weighing on profitability and full-year underlying cash profit (EBITDA) guidance of £77-£82mn fell well short of the market’s £90mn expectations.”

Generative AI analytics firm GenIP is nearing $1 million in total orders since the company was listed in London last year. 

An announcement released on Tuesday revealed the AI company has won orders totalling more than $850,000 since its IPO in October 2025, following the expansion into Chile with an order for 30 analytical assessments from a leading research organisation.

“I am delighted to announce another new international contract with a leading research university, marking GenIP’s first entry into the Chilean market,” said Melissa Cruz, CEO of GenIP.

“The institution has purchased 30 Invention Evaluator assessments, to support technology commercialisation decisions across its research portfolio. This milestone strengthens GenIP’s growing footprint in Latin America and underscores global demand for its GenAI-enabled services.”

GenIP’s move into Chile comes as part of a wider expansion into Latin America, which includes a recent deal with a government agency in Brazil.

The number of orders received since GenIP’s IPO has picked up pace in recent months, with large contracts from clients in Saudi Arabia and Singapore.

Providing insight into the company’s cost base and expansion plans, Cruz continued to explain GenIP’s financial position, highlighting that a large proportion of last year’s costs were related to the IPO and would not recur. 

“GenIP’s global expansion is underpinned by a healthy balance sheet that allows the Company to capitalise on opportunities as they arise,” Cruz said.

“As outlined in our audited results, the reported Operating Loss of $888,545 included $358,924 of share-based payments relating to the IPO that are not expected to recur. Customers typically pay in advance for Invention Evaluator report orders, providing the Company with operating cash flow and future revenue visibility, with revenue recognised upon completion and delivery of the report to the client. These factors help maintain the Company’s strong financial position.”

The FTSE 100 was on course to breach record highs on Tuesday despite several UK economic data releases pointing to a slowdown in the UK’s jobs market and retail sector.

Today’s gain served as a reminder that the FTSE 100 is not a representation of the UK, as the index added over 0.5% in early trade, driven largely by a weaker pound and hopes that the Bank of England would soon cut interest rates again.

The housebuilders surged higher on Tuesday as investors positioned for an easing of monetary policy that could help support demand for new build properties. A strong trading statement from Bellway also helped bolster the sector.

“UK housebuilders were at the top of the wish list for many investors after Bellway reported ‘robust’ spring trading. It was enough to drive a rally in the sector, putting the likes of Persimmon, Barratt Redrow and Taylor Wimpey at the top of the FTSE 100 risers’ list,” explained AJ Bell’s Russ Mould.

Persimmon was the FTSE 100’s top risers with a gain of 4%.

The Bank of England has been measured in the pace of its interest rate cuts, pointing to higher inflation and relatively robust economic as reasons to be cautious. However, today’s data will pile pressure on the voting members of the MPC to take action to prevent any further deterioration in economic conditions.

This was reflected in a weaker pound against the dollar, which helped London’s overseas earners gain. Diageo, Shell, and Ashtead were all heading higher.

UK jobs market

UK unemployment is on the rise. The number of people on UK payrolls fell the most since the beginning of the pandemic in May.

“The first labour market data since the rise in National Insurance contributions and the increase in the National Living Wage has been effective and suggests that employers have responded to rising labour costs by scaling back their workforce and hiring plans,” said Seemanti Ghosh, Principal Economist at the Institute for Employment Studies.

“The number of payrolled employees in the UK declined further between March and April 2025, potentially reflecting employers’ reactions to new cost pressures, alongside wider economic uncertainty.”

The first month following the introduction of Rachel Reeves’ national insurance ‘jobs tax’ saw employers slash 109,000 staff from payrolls. The unemployment rate increased to 4.6%. 

The positive market reaction for UK stocks to what is by no means good news is predominantly the result of investor positioning for a response by the authorities. Either a Bank of England rate cut or a scrapping of the national insurance hikes by the Chancellor are entirely plausible reactions, given that the slowing job market has been manufactured by a seemingly economically illiterate government.

AIM-listed Filtronic, the advanced micro electronics firm, secured a $32.5 million follow-on order from SpaceX for its E-band Cerus 32 Solid State Power Amplifier.

This is Filtronic’s biggest contract to date under the two firms’ strategic partnership.

The order represents a significant milestone for the company, which serves the space, aerospace, defence, and telecoms infrastructure markets. Most of the contract value is expected to be fulfilled during the 2026 financial year. The Filtronic board now expects to exceed current revenue forecasts for FY2026.

Filtronic shares were 8% higher at the time of writing.

SpaceX, Elon Musk’s space exploration and services company, has maintained a strategic partnership with Filtronic that has steadily grown and now makes up a substantial part of Filtronic’s orderbook.

The contract triggers the vesting of 10,949,079 share warrants under the strategic partnership framework. These warrants represent 5% of Filtronic’s current share capital.

Combined with previous vestings, warrants over 21,805,054 ordinary shares have now been activated, representing 9.96% of the company’s issued share capital. Additional warrants covering 4.96% of issued shares remain unvested, subject to meeting certain criteria.

“We are delighted to have secured our largest order to date with SpaceX, reinforcing Filtronic’s growing reputation for delivering high-performance RF solutions to the high-growth space market. This milestone builds on the momentum of recent contract awards and highlights the progress we are making as we expand in key strategic markets,” said Nat Edington, Chief Executive Officer of Filtronic.

Today’s deal follows another recent contract win from Airbus.