The FTSE 100 and the FTSE 250 went their separate ways on Friday, with the former taking the high road.
The FTSE 100 closed at 7,164, up 24 points, while the FTSE 250 also moved 24 points, only in reverse, to 19,805.
The Footsie advanced despite a 5.4% fall for house-builder Berkeley Group Holdings PLC (LON:BKG).
"The statement had a negative tone regarding the state of the housing market, which cited the constraints on people moving home due to the high transaction costs, the limit on mortgage income multiples and the prevailing economic uncertainty. Activity from buy-to-let investors is also drying up as a result of the removal of mortgage interest deductibility," noted Helal Miah at The Share Centre.
"As a result of this, management have said that the group will be unable to increase production beyond current business plans. The market today has taken this as a fairly strong sign of caution," thee research analyst noted.
Among the mid-caps, pUBS group JD Wetherspoon PLC (LON:JDW) served up a short measure in its half-year trading update.
"As a result of the strong 1H performance, full-year expectations remain unchanged but the outlook is cautious," noted Liberum, which rates the shares a 'hold' and has a price target of 1,330p.
The shares closed at 1,214p, down 81p on the day.
Berkeley Group Holdings The PLC (LON:BKG) Stock Rating Reaffirmed at Shore Capital; 6 Bullish Analysts Covering Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc. (HR...
- Gabriel Wilson (@noritsunagirota) March 16, 2018FTSE 100 was higher with less than two hours to go before the close as Wall Street continued on a positive trajectory.
The UK premier index is up over 27 points at 7,166.
Mid-cap cousin FTSE 250, and a more domestic company focused index, is not faring so well however, down around three points at 19,824.
It comes ahead of a key EU leaders' summit next week, and Brexit negotiators are trying hard to get an agreement on the details of the transition period after March next year.
In the US, the Dow Jones is up over 102 points at 24,976 while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are also higher.
Next week promises a veritable feast of corporate updates as well as wage growth and inflation data early in the week and then Bank of England fare as UK and US interest rates will be front and centre.
Bank of England and the US Federal Reserve are due to deliver their latest monetary policy decisions.
It will be a surprise if governor Mark Carney hikes UK rates next Thursday but in the US, few will be surprised if the Fed announces a 0.25 percentage points increase.
In company news Friday, shares in UK electronic trading firm NEX Group PLC (NXG) surged over 32% to 888p after saying it has received a preliminary approach from US-based exchange operator CME Group.
NEX said discussions were at an early stage and there can be no certainty an offer for the company will be made.
CME is one of the world's biggest exchange groups that owns the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, while NEX is a financial technology company that matches buyers and sellers of bonds, swaps and currencies.
FTSE 100 was nudging towards the red at around 1.30pm as US shares started higher.
The Dow Jones is up 85 points at 24,959, while the S&P 500 added around seven and the Nasdaq gained 13 points to 7,495.
The UK blue chip benchmark is up just 0.01% to 7,140 at the time of writing.
Glencore plc (LON:GLEN) was top riser, up 1.53% to 384.95p.
It comes after news this week that commodities titan GLEN, the world's biggest producer of cobalt, has inked a deal to sell around a third of its cobalt production over the next three years to Chinese battery recycler GEM, die to the predicted boom in electric vehicles.
Meanwhile, Evraz (LON:EVR) is top loser, down 4.68% to 418p
Elsewhere, BBA Aviation (LON:BBA) shares dropped 1.68% to 326.80p as US broker Jefferies downgraded its rating for the engineer to 'hold' from 'buy' but increased the price target to 350p, up from 340p.
The pace of new home building across the Pond slowed more than expected last month (February), new figures showed.
Housing starts, or ground-breaking as it's also known, fell 7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.236mln units, the figures from the US gov't department showed. A fall to 1.290mln units had been expected.
A survey yesterday also showed confidence among homebuilders dipping this month (March) although the market in broad terms remained strong.
As mortgage rates continue to rise though, builders were less upbeat about sales and buyers over the next six months.
FTSE 100 is holding onto gains ahead of the US open, up around 13 points at 7,153.
Berkeley Group Holdings (LON:BKG) remains the top laggard, down 4.21% to 3,748p as it offered a downbeat assessment of future building volumes and pitted itself against the UK government on new build policy.
Miners were doing well with copper titan Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) up around 2% to 979.40p.
In the US, after a mixed close, futures point to a mixed open, with S&P futures up 1.5 points; the Dow Jones Industrial Index up 14 and the Nasdaq exchange down 1.25.
"...after an exhausting week for US political drama - with more on the horizon if the reports are correct that Trump is set to replace HR McMaster as national security advisor - the Dow Jones is looking all worn out," said Connor Campbell at Spreadex.
"As for the FTSE, it could only manage a 0.1% increase this Friday. The index is being held back in part by Berkeley Group and the housebuilders, the former plunging nearly 5% after claiming that 'market constraints' means it can't ramp up its production levels to match the targets set by the government.
"This update sent a ripple of concern through the rest of the sector, with Galliford Try down 4.1%, Barratt Developments down 1.4% and Taylor Wimpey down 1.2%."
FreedomWonInc. US stock futures signal weak open as global stocks drift lower: Global... https://t.co/YTQn2Mv5Ju
- Dave Childress (@metaldc4life) 16 March 2018Among notable small cap movers, Thor Mining (LON:THR) added over 27% to 2.88p.
It told investors that its Pilot Mountain tungsten project had received a boost after the US House of Representatives passed an Act that lists the metal as a critical commodity.
The House's Natural Resources Committee has passed the National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act, which Thor expects to accelerate regulatory approvals of mining developments for critical mineral projects in the US.
Mosman Oil And Gas Limited (LON:MSMN) shares gushed up 9% to 0.90p as it confirmed that it has increased its stake in the Arkoma project, in Oklahoma to 27%.
The company said that it will now proceed with installing high-volume electrical submersible pumps and infrastructure upgrades to support production growth at Arkoma.
The so-called miners that make cryptocurrency are not a major risk to Britain's electricity infrastructure, according to the National Grid today.
There have been fears the miners pose a threat to the country's supply chain.
Often operations are in countries like Iceland because buying energy in Britain costs too much.
Today's revelation from National Grid comes after Bank of England Governor Mark Carney blasted consumption rates branding them "enormous" and called on regulation of cryptos, which he has described as 'speculative mania'.
His comments were made ahead of the G20 summit in Argentina where Carney and other leading economists are to discuss regulation of the sector.
Bitcoin is down nearly 2% today at US$8,138 as it has yet to make the recovery from the plunge to US$7,000 and some analysts reckon Bitcon could go down as low as US$2,800 in 2018.
Inflation in the Euro zone came in less than expected last month due to a fall in food prices.
The figure for the 19 Euro using countries was 0.2% month-on-month and 1.1% year-on-year. Economists had predicted a 1.2% annual rise.
"Today's inflation figures demonstrated that much work lies ahead of the ECB before it reaches its target rate of "approaching 2%", after the inflationary reading came in wafer shy of expectations at 1.1%," said Dennis de Jong, managing director at UFX.com.
He added: "While Mario Draghi had previously tempered expectations of reaching the ECB's target within Q1, this minor regression won't deter the ECB President from his assertion that positive movement will kick in by Q2.
"A loose monetary policy should accordingly remain Draghi's strategic order of the day, but strong economic growth and booming employment figures across the eurozone could see him remove this bias in the next few months."E
FTSE 100 is up nearly 7 points at 7,146.
Theresa May is saying builders need to open up their land banks and develop more sites, while Berkeley is unwilling to aggressively ramp up production, says George Salmon, Equity Analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
"With conditions in the capital starting to look more precarious, it's easy to see why Berkeley has reservations.
"After all, adopting overly ambitious strategies just before the market turns has caught out many a builder over the years.
"Its comments on the complexity of getting work started is a clear signal to the government that it believes the best way to move forward is not to churn through the land on its books, but to remove the red tape around the development process."
FTSE 100 is up over 12 points at the time of writing at 7,152.
Intriguing developments with @BerkeleyGroupUK as @DavidParsleyPW reports on how the housebuilder seems to have has positioned itself directly against the government by saying it doesn't plan to increase the number of homes it builds: https://t.co/B89m8Z1YHt
- PropertyWeek (@PropertyWeek) 16 March 20189.45am: Sterling heads higher..
Sterling firmed on Friday as dollar weakness continued amid uncertainty surrounding President Trump's inner circle.
The pound gained 0.02% to 1.1327 against the Euro and was up 0.29% to 1.3967 against the US dollar.
The dollar has lost ground following a report in the Washington Post that US President Donald Trump is set to now sack his national security adviser Lieutenant General HR McMaster.
It would follow the sudden and shock departure of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, which emerged earlier this week, and the resignation of chief economic adviser Gary Cohn.
After starting lower, FTSE 100 was heading north by 9am Friday as traders shrugged off the Berkeley Group update and await the Wall Street start.
"Once again the European markets were reluctant to do much without getting the all clear from the US first," said Connor Campbell, analyst at Spreadex.
Top riser on Footsie was shopping centre owner Hammerson (LON:HMSO), which added 1.20% to 439.6p as it bounced back from the collapse yesterday after the Credit Suisse downgrade.
Campbell also added: "Investors were willing to cheer Wetherspoons this Friday despite the ubiquitous pub chain striking a 'cautious' tone for the second half of its financial year."
"Spoons" shares lost 2.39% to stand at 1,264p each.
Elsewhere, Range Resources (LON:RRL) added 14.29% to 0.20p as it revealed first-half losses narrowed after it boosted production volumes and achieved a higher average selling price for its oil.
Capital Drilling (LON:CAPD) added 7.44% to 39p as results were better than expected.
There was about 28% of revenue growth for the 12 months ended December 31, driving a sUBStantial improvement in earnings.
FTSE 100 started slightly in the red as house builder Berkeley Group Holdings plc (LON:BKG) lost ground early on and traders continue to fret over global economic uncertainty.
Shares in the London focused developer lagged 3.62% to 3,781p as it did little to cheer the market via a trading statement, saying it would be unable to increase production further and remains cautious with investments given the slowdown in the property market.
Market conditions in London and the South East have softened due to higher stamp duty on second home purchases, tougher rules on mortgage applications and economic uncertainty, it said.
Meanwhile, Mitie Goup plc (LON:MTO) shed over 7% to 149.40p as its update in the 12 months to March 31 also disappointed, and as the boss said the Carillion collapse raised 'fundamental questions' about the outsourcing industry. Revenue growth is anticipated between 2% and 2.5% for the period.
Going the other way though was pub chain JD Wetherspoon (LON:JDW), which added 3.47% to 1,340p as it posted a 20.6% rise in profit before tax to ?62mln for the first half of its financial year
But the group, founded by Tim Martin, said it expects its growth in like-for-like sales to be lower in the next six months.
FTSE 100 shed 4.47 at 7,135 in early deals in London.
Trinidad-based oiler Range Resources Limited (LON:RRL) increased production by an average 22% in its latest half-year. Yan Liu, Range's chief executive, said: "We are extremely encouraged by the progress in both operational and financial performance demonstrated in the interim results.
Capital Drilling Limited (LON:CAPD) has reported some 28% of revenue growth for the twelve months ended December 31, driving a sUBStantial improvement in earnings. The drill services contractor reported US$24.3mln of earnings (EBITDA), up 86% from the US$13.1mln achieved in the preceding year, after revenues grew to US$119mln from US$93.3mln.
Curzon Energy Plc (LON:CZN) has updated investors on its operations at the Coos Bay coal bed methane project, where test gas production volumes are described as being in line with expectations. The company noted that the production was, at present, sufficient to power the wellhead pumping equipment and it is expecting rates to increase steadily as well dewatering operations continue.
Energy firm Aggregated Micro Power Holdings plc (LON:AMPH) unveiled plans to reduce the firm's capital, kick-starting a process, which could see dividends paid to shareholders. The company, which sells wood fuels and installs commercial-size biomass-fuelled boilers, currently does not have any distributable reserves and is therefore not allowed to pay divis, but the board thinks now is the time to change this.
Feedback plc (LON:FDBK) has announced the appointment of Lindsay Melvin as chief financial officer with immediate effect. The AIM-listed medical imaging firm said that Melvin, a chartered accountant, brings 30 years of financial and business experience to the company.
Active Energy Group PLC (LON:AEG) has announced the appointment of Simon Melling as a non-executive director of the company with immediate effect. It said Melling, who will serve on the company's Audit and Remuneration Committees, is a highly experienced corporate and commercial specialist with extensive experience in the growth company arena, both as a CEO of an AIM listed company and as a corporate finance adviser to growth companies.
Tavistock Investments PLC (LON:TAVI) said it has agreed to grant two additional tranches of performance-related share options to key members of the senior management team, including chairman, Oliver Cooke, and chief executive, Brian Raven. The first tranche of the performance-related share options is over an aggregate total of 30,000,000 shares and the second tranche is over an aggregate total of 30,000,000 shares, making a combined aggregate total of 60,000,000 shares.
Shanta Gold Limited (LON:SHG) has announced that, following salary sacrifices by senior management and the change in company policy to pay senior management performance pay in shares, Eric Zurrin (chief executive officer), Luke Leslie (chief financial officer), Honest Mrema (general manager), Philbert Rweyemamu (general manager) and Calvin Mlingi (head of country Affairs) have each been issued with ordinary shares which, in aggregate, this will result in the issuance of 7,692,898 ordinary shares.
Ariana Resources plc(LON:AAU) said it has been informed that Diana de Villiers, the wife of its chairman Michael de Villiers today purchased 2mln ordinary shares at an average price of 1.33p per share. Following this purchase, Michael de Villiers' total shareholding will be held to be 42mln ordinary shares representing 4% of the company's issued share capital.
Xtract Resources PLC (LON:XTR) announced late yesterday that is has appointed Novum Securities Limited as joint broker to the company with immediate effect. It said Beaumont Cornish Limited, continues to act as nominated adviser and joint broker to the company.
FTSE 100 is called to start a tad lower at the end of the week after shares cooled in Asia overnight and there was a mixed finish on Wall Street.
Later, investors will be mulling inflation data from Europe to add to a clutch of stats yesterday from the US, which should throw light on what the ECB may do in September, when the central bank's current monetary policy comes to an end.
The UK premier index closed little changed on Thursday as traders were jittery about taking risk, finishing around seven points higher at 7,139.
Today, spreadbetters at IG Index are calling it to start around two points lower than that.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones closed 115 higher at 24,873, but both the Nasdaq and S&P 500 slid as markets fretted over President Trump's huge China import tariff plan.
In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index was down around one point at the time of writing and the Nikkei 225 in Japan fell 93 at 21,710.
David Madden, market analyst at CMC Markets, said today's ECB inflation could confirm the cost of living in the European bloc is moving further away from its 2% target.
"The ECB's loose monetary policy has seen growth in the area, but CPI is the one major economic indicator that continues to lag," he noted.
"Traders are wondering what the ECB will do come September when the monetary policy comes to an end. It is in the central bank's interest to keep the euro a little on the soft side, as it would assist the economy and stimulate inflation."
Elsewhere, in macro news, the US will release housing starts, building permits and the University of Michigan consumer sentiment report this afternoon.
It is relatively quiet day on the UK corporate front, but traders will be looking out for what are expected to be solid first half results from pub chain JD Wetherspoon (LON:JDW).
As ever, boss Tim Martin will be expected not to miss an opportunity to talk Brexit and the benefits for the company.
In a trading update in January, the company said like-for-like sales rose by 6% and total sales increased 4.3% in the first six months of the year.
Interims: JD Wetherspoon PLC (LON:JDW)
Trading update: Berkeley Group PLC (LON:BKL), Mitie PLC (LON:MTO), Investec PLC (LON:INVP) SThree PLC (LON:STHR)
Finals: Capital Drilling Ltd (LON:CAPD), Cloudbuy PLC (LON:CBUY)
Economic data: BoE Financial Policy Committee meeting statement; EU inflation; US housing starts; US industrial production; University of Michigan consumer sentiment