London open: Stocks gain but Landsec, Workspace in the red
London stocks rose in early trade on Friday as investors continued to mull the main event of the week - the trade deal between the US and China.
At 0840 BST, the FTSE 100 was up 0.4% at 8,669.45.
Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said: "The chief driver of global markets this week has been improving US trade relations, especially with China."
There are no major UK data releases due, but in the US, the Michigan consumer sentiment index for May will be eyed.
Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "It's expected to rise from 52.2 last month to 53.1. Anything significantly higher could dampen the prospects for further US rate cuts this year."
In equity markets, Land Securities fell even as the real estate investment trust met consensus forecasts with a small increase full-year profits, and reiterated confidence in its plans to reallocate capital away from offices in the coming years.
Workspace tanked after the office space provider flagged a trading profit headwind of around £7m for the year ending 31 March 2026.
Specialist media platform Future slid as it reported a jump in interim profits but cautioned that it expected a low single-digit decline in full-year 2025 organic revenue amid economic uncertainty.
The company posted a 21% increase in pre-tax profit to £56.6m for the six months to March. Revenue fell 3% to £378.4m, as growth in the first quarter was offset by uncertain macroeconomic sentiment in March, impacting US direct advertising.
Vesuvius tumbled as it said its end markets remain challenging and it now expects full-year results to be slightly lower than previous guidance.
Fresnillo nudged up as it announced the sale of the majority of its stake in MAG Silver following Pan American Silver's agreement to acquire MAG, as the resulting reduced shareholding in Pan American would no longer align with Fresnillo's strategic investment objectives.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,669.45 0.41%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,918.75 0.35%
techMARK (TASX) 4,715.00 0.36%
FTSE 100 - Risers
St James's Place (STJ) 1,113.00p 3.92%
GSK (GSK) 1,389.50p 1.98%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 93.04p 1.95%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,118.00p 1.33%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 10,274.00p 1.30%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,700.00p 1.24%
3i Group (III) 4,066.00p 1.14%
Tesco (TSCO) 367.10p 0.93%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,639.00p 0.87%
Rightmove (RMV) 750.60p 0.78%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Land Securities Group (LAND) 589.00p -2.40%
Smurfit Westrock (DI) (SWR) 3,484.00p -1.05%
Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 18,245.00p -0.90%
Kingfisher (KGF) 314.10p -0.63%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,143.50p -0.48%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 473.50p -0.44%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,848.00p -0.43%
HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 875.80p -0.42%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,134.00p -0.42%
Glencore (GLEN) 269.55p -0.39%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Diversified Energy Company (DEC) 1,065.00p 4.21%
Premier Foods (PFD) 208.00p 3.74%
Quilter (QLT) 156.70p 3.43%
PRS Reit (The) (PRSR) 118.20p 2.78%
IP Group (IPO) 45.75p 2.58%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 1,952.00p 2.52%
Lion Finance Group (BGEO) 6,325.00p 2.51%
Rathbones Group (RAT) 1,652.00p 2.48%
Chrysalis Investments Limited NPV (CHRY) 103.00p 2.39%
Target Healthcare Reit Ltd (THRL) 100.00p 2.35%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Workspace Group (WKP) 406.00p -10.57%
Dr. Martens (DOCS) 57.30p -5.68%
Future (FUTR) 706.50p -5.17%
Vesuvius (VSVS) 356.60p -4.81%
Ninety One (N91) 152.30p -4.45%
Renishaw (RSW) 2,680.00p -2.55%
PPHE Hotel Group Ltd (PPH) 1,360.00p -2.44%
THG (THG) 26.68p -2.06%
Kier Group (KIE) 155.60p -1.89%
JPMorgan Emerging Markets Inv Trust (JMG) 109.20p -1.62%
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