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.
Stock prices in Europe were higher on Tuesday despite French President Emmanuel Macron losing another prime minister, as investors brace for more US labour market data in the form of benchmark revisions this afternoon.
The FTSE 100 index rose 15.38 points, 0.2%, at 9,236.82. The FTSE 250 was up 62.91 points, 0.3%, at 21,747.36, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.79 points, 0.2%, at 771.52.
The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.1% at 925.99, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.2% at 19,025.07, but the Cboe Small Companies was 0.4% lower at 17,130.33.
In Paris, the CAC 40 was up 0.7%. In Frankfurt, the DAX 40 was flat.
In New York on Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.3%, the S&P 500 rose 0.2% and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.5%.
‘There was no shortage of drama at the start of September. Firstly, the weak US payrolls number, then a double whammy of political turmoil on Monday with both France and Japan losing their Prime Ministers. However, none of this has spooked financial markets. Usually concerns about a US economic slowdown and mounting political risks trigger big moves out of risky assets and into safe havens. However, not this time. US stocks are close to record highs; the Nasdaq composite index reached a fresh record high on Monday,’ XTB analyst Kathleen Brooks commented.
Following the collapse of France’s centre-right government, President Emmanuel Macron is set to swiftly appoint a new prime minister, his office said.
The Elysee Palace said on Monday evening that Macron will meet with outgoing Prime Minister Francois Bayrou on Tuesday to accept his government’s resignation.
‘The president will appoint a new prime minister in the coming days,’ the statement added, noting that Macron has taken the outcome of the confidence vote into account.
Bayrou had tied a confidence vote in the National Assembly to his proposed austerity measures but failed. A total of 364 deputies voted against him, while only 194 supported him. As head of state, Macron is responsible for appointing the prime minister.
In focus in the US this week is consumer price index data on Thursday. Before that, there is a producer price reading on Wednesday and at 1500 BST on Tuesday, there will be nonfarm payrolls benchmark revision data for the 12 months to March, published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics at 1500 BST.
Analysts at ING commented: ‘Today’s US data can shed a little more light on that reassessment of the US jobs market with the release of annual benchmark revisions in the year to March. In a recent speech, the Fed’s Christopher Waller said the downward revision could be worth as much as 60k per month. And perhaps that’s why the consensus for today’s revision is around 700k for the annual figure. This time last year, the preliminary revision was -818k and it looks like we would need to see a bigger number than that to trigger a fresh leg lower in short-term US interest rates and the dollar.’
Sterling advanced at to $1.3573 on Tuesday morning, from $1.3545 at the time of the London equities close on Monday. The euro climbed to $1.1763 from $1.1749, shaking off the French turmoil. Against the yen, the dollar declined to JP¥147.14 from JP¥147.60.
The yield on the 10-year US Treasury sat at 4.07%, widening from 4.05% at the time of the London equities close on Monday. The yield on the 30-year was unmoved at 4.71%.
Gold rose to $3,649.13 an ounce from $3,644.14 at the time of the London equities close on Monday. A barrel of Brent rose to $66.73 from $66.31.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 ended down 0.4% but hit a record high in morning trade. The Shanghai Composite fell 0.5%, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong added 1.1%. In Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.6%.
In London, Anglo American shares rose 7.9%, the best FTSE 100 performer, as it agreed a deal to combine with Teck Resources, creating a ‘critical minerals champion and top five global copper producer’. The ‘merger of equals’ will see Anglo issue 1.3301 ordinary shares to Teck shareholders, in exchange for each outstanding Teck class A common share and class B subordinate voting share.
‘Subject to satisfaction of certain conditions, the Anglo American board also intends to declare a special dividend of $4.5 billion (expected to be approximately $4.19 per ordinary share) to be paid by Anglo American to its shareholders,’ it added. ‘Immediately following completion of the merger, Anglo American and Teck shareholders will own approximately 62.4% and 37.6% respectively, of Anglo Teck PLC.’
The enlarged firm is expected to have stock market listings in London, Johannesburg, Toronto and New York, the latter through American depositary receipts.
Anglo Teck is expected to ‘offer more than 70% copper exposure’.
Gamma Communications surged 11%. The provider of business-to-business communication services upped its outlook.
It said pretax profit for the first half of 2025 fell 10% to £43.5 million from £48.5 million. Revenue, however, improved 12% to £316.6 million from £282.5 million.
Gamma lifted its dividend by 14% to 7.4 pence per share from 6.5p.
For the full-year, it expects adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation in line with current market expectations, but adjusted earnings per share ‘slightly ahead’.
Dunelm fell 4.7%. The homewares seller said annual revenue and profit edged up, and while trading in its new financial year has been pleasing, it is ‘yet to see signs of a sustained consumer recovery’.
It reported pretax profit of £211.0 million for the year to June 28, rising 2.7% from £205.4 million. Revenue rose 3.8% to £1.77 billion from £1.71 billion.
Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.