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 gained 0.3% to 7,588.71 by midday on Wednesday as UK inflation hit a 30-year high.
The UK consumer price index rose 5.4% in the year to December, according to the Office for National Statistics, ahead of expectations for a 5.2% increase.
Luxury fashion brand Burberry rose 4.7% to £18.373 after it upgraded its annual profit guidance on the back of a material improvement in full-price sales in Asia and Europe.
Burberry was now expecting adjusted operating profit for the year through March to grow in the region of 35% at constant currency. Its third-quarter retail revenue rose 5%.
Educational publisher and services group Pearson gained 4.4% to 660.2p as it, too, upgraded its annual profit guidance, having boosted sales in its assessments and virtual learning businesses.
Pearson's adjusted operating profit for the year through December was now expected to rise by about 33% to around £385 million, ahead of consensus expectations £375 million, on revenue growth of 8%.
Elsewhere, mining giant BHP gained 0.4% to £24.255 even as it downgraded its annual production guidance for copper and metallurgical coal.
BHP stuck to its guidance for iron ore, energy coal and nickel.
Chile focused copper play Antofagasta reversed 1.1% to £14.23 after it warned of a fall in production this year, owing to lower grades and an ongoing drought.
Copper production in 2022 was expected at between 660,000 and 690,000 tonnes, at a net cash cost of $1.55 per pounds, down from 721,500 tonnes in 2021.
Drug maker GlaxoSmithKline shed 0.3% to £16.956 on announcing the departure of chief scientific officer Hal Barron, who was moving on to take up the chief executive role at Altos Labs.
Baron was being replaced by Tony Wood, who had joined GlaxoSmithKline from Pfizer in 2017.
Book and convenience retailer WH Smith climbed 3.1% to £16.0038 despite its revenue falling to 85% of pre-pandemic levels as the Omicron variant disrupted footfall at travel hubs and on the High Street.
Revenue had recovered to 90% of 2019 levels for November, but had slipped back again since then -- though WH Smith said it expected travel demand to recover in the coming months.
Foreign exchange service provider Wise firmed 1.8% to 684.8p after its third-quarter revenue rose 34% on the back of higher transfer volumes.
Wise said it still expected its 'take rate' to be slightly lower in the second half, due to price decreases for customers, offset by higher volumes that would see annual revenue grow by a forecast 30%.
Payments company PCI-PAL rallied 18% to 68.6p on guiding for a narrower annual loss after it beat its revenue expectations for the first half.
PCI-PAL's revenue in the six months through December rose 72% year-on-year to £5.4 million.
Sports nutrition group Science in Sport advanced 2.6% to 70.25p, having upgraded its annual earnings guidance after it boosted sales by a quarter.
Specialist audio visual distributor Midwich jumped 4.9% to 656.6p as it upgraded its annual earnings guidance after its sales rose by a fifth.