FTSE 100 Live: Stocks reach all-time high; US fires back at ‘surprise’ Iran attacks
Welcome back to the CityAM FTSE 100 liveblog.
It’s Wednesday and the UK’s blue-chip index surged in early trading to reach an all-time high, brushing off the latest outbreak of attacks in the Middle East.
The FTSE 100 hit 10,945 on the market open, eclipsing the previous intraday record of 10,934, achieved in February on the day before the US and Israel first launched strikes against Iran. The index shed these gains towards midday, but remained firmly in the green.
Greggs was among the FTSE’s highest risers on Wednesday morning, gaining more than 12 per cent after notching a 20 per cent jump in pre-tax profit to £76m and doubling down on plans to reach as many as 3,500 stores across the UK.
Aberdeen was the FTSE 100’s biggest faller on Wednesday morning. This is despite a surge in inflows at investment platform Interactive Investor pushing the firm’s pre-tax profit up two per cent to £276m.
Rival wealth manager Rathbones took a near £1bn hit in net outflows as it braces for the fallout of a competition probe over compliance shortcomings. The firm slipped 0.7 per cent on early trading.
The FTSE 100’s gains earlier this week came as oil prices fell during a pause in fighting between the US and Iran. Oil prices began to rise again on Wednesday after the US struck Iranian proxies in retaliation for an “attempted surprise attack” on its forces in the Middle East, but UK investors were not deterred by the latest outbreak of tensions.
“The FTSE 100 has largely shrugged off events, with energy giants gaining ground on higher oil prices offering support,” said Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club.
We’ll be bringing you the latest market updates and analysis as the day develops.
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