London midday: FTSE maintains gains as investors eyed Fed, BoE

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were still firmer by midday on Tuesday as investors eyed the start of the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting and this week's Bank of England announcement.

The FTSE 100 was up 0.3% at 8,706.06.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "The FTSE 100's recovery from a dip earlier this month continued with pace.

"Investor risk appetite is tentatively returning, as evidenced by miners leading the charge and people buying the recent dip in retailers. However, investors aren't diving headfirst into the deep end. They're taking things slowly, hence why banks and their reassuring dividends were also in demand.

"The fact gold hit another new record high also shows that investors are hedging their bets. They might be increasing equities exposure, but they're also adding a form of insurance to portfolios. Gold briefly hit $3,026, continuing a strong run for the precious metal amid a weakening dollar and concerns that Donald Trump's policies are going to cause economic havoc both in the US and abroad."

The yellow metal was also in demand due to renewed hostilities in the Middle East, after Israel launched extensive air strikes against Hamas targets in Gaza early on Tuesday. It said these were in response to the militant group's "repeated refusal to release our hostages".

Hamas said more than 300 people had been killed and over 400 injured, calling the action "treacherous aggression".

Investors were eyeing the start of the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting.

Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said: "We don't expect the Fed to change policy on Wednesday; but the updated economic forecasts and dot plot will be crucial for the direction of asset prices later this week."

Meanwhile, Thursday sees the latest policy announcement from the Bank of England.

Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said markets are pricing in a 90% chance of no change "as policymakers navigate the challenging task of balancing slowing growth with sticky inflation".

In equity markets, Anglo American rallied after an upgrade to 'sector perform' from 'underperform' at RBC Capital Markets.

Bytes Technology surged as it reported double-digit growth across all key financial metrics over the year to 28 February, with gross invoiced income topping the �2bn mark for the first time.

Shares in Computacenter soared as the IT group turned upbeat on its prospects after a strong second half that helped annual profit nudge ahead of forecasts, despite an uncertain macroeconomic environment and softer market conditions in the UK, offset by stronger performances in the US and Germany.

Trustpilot gained sharply as it lifted its full-year outlook for 2025 following a "strong" performance in 2024.

Recruiter SThree advanced as it held on to its full-year guidance despite a weak first quarter with double-digit declines in fees for both contract and permanent positions.

On the downside, Close Brothers tanked after the merchant banking group said it swung to a hefty loss in the first half on the back of a �165m provision for motor finance commissions.

Close Brothers reported a pre-tax loss of �103m for the six months to 31 January, compared with a �88.1m profit recorded a year earlier. The �165m motor finance provision had already been well flagged.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,706.06 0.30%

FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,185.46 0.79%

techMARK (TASX) 4,791.55 0.65%

FTSE 100 - Risers

JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 77.40p 3.84%

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 297.70p 3.01%

easyJet (EZJ) 502.00p 2.66%

Barclays (BARC) 302.65p 2.65%

Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,936.50p 2.27%

NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 458.60p 2.21%

Airtel Africa (AAF) 158.00p 2.13%

Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 327.10p 2.00%

HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 894.70p 1.94%

Entain (ENT) 665.40p 1.77%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Games Workshop Group (GAW) 14,400.00p -1.77%

Unilever (ULVR) 4,516.00p -1.74%

British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,149.00p -1.59%

Relx plc (REL) 3,764.00p -1.31%

United Utilities Group (UU.) 975.80p -1.29%

London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 10,840.00p -1.28%

Rightmove (RMV) 678.60p -1.17%

Intertek Group (ITRK) 4,842.00p -1.14%

The Sage Group (SGE) 1,179.00p -1.09%

National Grid (NG.) 966.60p -1.02%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 491.20p 18.53%

Computacenter (CCC) 2,632.00p 12.77%

Softcat (SCT) 1,612.00p 7.40%

Ocado Group (OCDO) 252.80p 5.82%

Kainos Group (KNOS) 744.00p 5.68%

Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,801.00p 4.89%

Trustpilot Group (TRST) 290.00p 4.88%

TBC Bank Group (TBCG) 4,495.00p 4.17%

Lion Finance Group (BGEO) 5,670.00p 3.47%

NCC Group (NCC) 141.00p 3.22%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

QinetiQ Group (QQ.) 402.00p -3.41%

AO World (AO.) 95.80p -2.04%

Clarkson (CKN) 3,550.00p -1.53%

PPHE Hotel Group Ltd (PPH) 1,280.00p -1.16%

4Imprint Group (FOUR) 3,910.00p -1.14%

Marshalls (MSLH) 234.50p -1.05%

W.A.G Payment Solutions (WPS) 59.00p -1.01%

International Workplace Group (IWG) 179.20p -0.88%

Elementis (ELM) 148.20p -0.80%

Breedon Group (BREE) 474.00p -0.73%