Banking stocks and strong US open lift FTSE 0.9%

Archived article

Please note that tax, investment, pension and ISA rules can change and the information and any views contained in this article may now be inaccurate.

The FTSE 100 closed Tuesday up 0.9% to 7,077.10 lifted by strong banks and a rebound on Wall Street.

By 4.30pm UK time the S&P 500 had regained yesterday's losses to trade 1.4% higher at 4,362.27.

Bakery chain Greggs rallied 10.6% to £31.78, having upped its annual guidance after reporting a 3.5% rise in third-quarter like-for-like sales from company-managed shops.

Greggs forecast a full-year outcome 'ahead of our previous expectations', even while warning that its costs were expected to rise towards the end of 2021 and into 2022.

Engineering group Melrose Industries dropped 1.7% to 168p after it said that although its aerospace business is recovering, its automotive and powder metallurgy units are being hit by supply constraints.

Melrose said while the timing and duration of the constraints was uncertain, the consensus view was that they had lengthened.

Industrial laser group Gooch & Housego rose 2.4% to £12.89 on guiding for full-year results 'slightly ahead' of expectations amid strengthening demand in the second half of its financial year.

Industrial and medical lasers were demonstrating a sustained recovery, it said, while telecommunications and life sciences continue to perform well.

Furniture and flooring retailer ScS dropped 1.5% to 268p even as it swung to a full-year profit -- though it warned of supply-chain challenges including driver shortages and higher material and shipping costs.

ScS, which also reported a lower year-to-date order intake, declared a final dividend of 7p per share, upping the full-year payout to 10p, compared to no payout year-on-year.

Logistics group Wincanton advanced 7.6% to 356p on announcing that it was on track to meet profit expectations even as it grapples with the driver shortage.

In a trading update for the six months through September, Wincanton said it had continued to deliver 'strong' revenue growth and agreed rate changes in response to the supply constraints.

Upmarket chocolate retailer Hotel Chocolat firmed 11% to 449.7p, having swung to a full-year profit as sales growth accelerated following a re-opening of UK stores.