Tuesday,30 April 2024 08:37:11

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Tuesday,30 April 2024 at 07:35

UK & European markets opened slightly higher ahead of a busy day of earnings and major data releases in the region.

Asia-Pacific markets largely rose, tracking Wall Street moves overnight, while investors assessed factory activity figures from China.

Oil edged down in early trade after Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks in Cairo helped quell market fears of an expanded conflict in the Middle East, while worries about the outlook for U.S. interest rates weighed on the market.

Gold prices were set for a third straight monthly gain, even as bullion prices eased on Tuesday as the dollar firmed ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting starting later in the day.

In corporate news, hospitality group Whitbread announced a £150m share buyback and beefed up its dividend after seeing its bottom line jump by more than a third in the year to 29 February.

The company, which owns Premier Inn, Beefeater and a number of other names in the pub, restaurant and hotels sector, said results were bolstered by a record annual profit from Premier Inn UK and an improvement in Germany where it continues to narrow losses.

Adjusted pre-tax profit totalled £561m, up 36% on the year before, helping the company lift its total dividend by 31% to 97p per share.

Markets

At 08:30

FTSE 100 8,173 +0.33%

FTSE 250 20,129 +0.22%

DAX 18,104 (-0.08%)

At the close

Dow Jones 38,386 +0.38%

S&P 500 5,116 +0.32%

NASDAQ 15,983 +0.35%

Fixed Income

UK 10-YR YIELD 4.286

Exchange Rates

GBP/USD 1.253

GBP/EUR 1.170

Commodities

Gold $2,318 (-0.69%)

Brent $87.28 +0.03%

Important - No news or research item should be construed as a recommendation to trade. The inclusion of securities within this report does not necessarily imply their suitability for individual portfolios or situations in respect of which further advice should be sought. Information contained in this report has been compiled from sources believed to be reliable but is not warranted to be accurate or complete.