U.K. Shares Gain for Second Day; Glencore Debuts
U.K. Shares Gain for Second Day
Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
A stockbroker studies share prices on his computer screens at Shore Capital Markets in London.
A stockbroker studies share prices on his computer screens at Shore Capital Markets in London. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
(Corrects to remove direction of trading for Glencore in headline.)
U.K. shares rose for a second day, for the gauge’s largest two-day gain in a month, after U.S. jobless claims fell more than expected and oil companies climbed as investors bet that Chinese demand will escalate.
Glencore International Plc was unchanged after its first day of trading in London after selling $10 billion of stock in its initial public offering. BP Plc (BP/), which makes up 5.5 percent of the benchmark FTSE 100 Index (UKX), climbed 1.6 percent as BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research advised buying the shares. Invensys Plc (ISYS) sank 3.1 percent.
The FTSE 100 rose 32.5, or 0.6 percent, to 5,955.99 at the 4:30 p.m. close in London. The FTSE All-Share Index (ASX) advanced 0.6 percent, while Ireland’s ISEQ Index increased 1.4 percent.
“Today is all about Glencore” said Simon Maughan, co-head of European equities at MF Global Ltd. in London. “We expect it to trade up to a billion shares and as a consequence of that issue both finance and trading is concentrated in that space and leaves everything else fairly quiet.”
In the U.S., Fed Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard said in an interview in New York that the central bank may keep its monetary policy unchanged until late this year.
A weekly report from the Labor Department in Washington showed that fewer Americans than forecast filed applications for unemployment benefits last week, suggesting that last month’s surge in claimants was temporary rather than an indication of a weakening economy.
Glencore was unchanged at 530 pence in its first day on the London Stock Exchange, erasing a gain of as much as 3.8 percent, after selling $10 billion of stock in an initial public offering. Demand for the stock overcame a decline in oil, nickel and aluminum prices. The world’s largest commodities trader had sold its shares at 530 pence apiece.
BP, Barclays Advance
BP, Europe’s second-largest oil company by sales, climbed 1.6 percent to 447.9 pence. BofA Merrill Lynch upgraded the shares to “buy” from “neutral.”
Barclays Plc (BARC) rose 2.5 percent to 277.5 pence after Berenberg Bank increased its rating on the stock to “buy” from “hold”. Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBS) gained 1.1 percent to 42.2 pence. Exane BNP Paribas initiated coverage of both banks with an “outperform” rating.
ITV Plc (ITV) jumped 4 percent to 69.7 pence as Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. raised its recommendation to “outperform” from “market perform.” The brokerage said ITV’s exclusive rights to the Rugby World Cup, which starts in New Zealand in September, will give the broadcaster a strong second half.
Invensys, Investec
Invensys Plc sank 3.1 percent to 299.8 pence even after the U.K. maker of controls that help run Whirlpool Corp. washing machines reported full-year net income that beat analysts’ estimates. Invensys, which retreated for a seventh day, may drop out of the FTSE 100, following Glencore’s IPO, analysts at Societe Generale SA wrote today. The company is one of the smallest stocks in the index.
Investec Plc (INVP), the South African private bank with a dual London-Johannesburg listing, surged 5.4 percent to 487 pence. Full-year profit climbed 21 percent to 420.5 million pounds ($680 million) as earnings from its wealth and asset-management units increased, the company reported. Chief Executive Officer Stephen Koseff said the dividend could rise further in the current financial year.
Close Brothers Group Plc (CBG), the 133-year-old British investment bank, jumped 3.3 percent to 800.5 pence after reporting a “sound performance” in its fiscal third quarter, helped by a 4 percent increase in its loan book to 3.3 billion pounds. Close Brothers’ asset-management unit made a “small loss” in the quarter ended April 30.
Lamprell Plc (LAM) soared 9.6 percent to 385.1 pence, its highest price since September last year. The Douglas, Isle of Man-based offshore engineering group said it will use a rights offer of as much as 139.4 million pounds, debt and cash to acquire Dubai- based oil-rig maker, Maritime Industrial Services Co. Oilfield service company Petrofac Ltd. jumped 3.9 percent to 1,528 pence after the shares was raised to “buy” from “hold” at Collins Stewart Plc.
To contact the reporters on this story: {Peter Levring} in Copenhagen at plevring1@bloomberg.net;
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew Rummer at arummer@bloomberg.net
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