Tech stocks and Bitcoin were under pressure today after Oracle Corp results soured the mood in the wake of last night’s US interest rate cut.
The Federal Reserve lowered rates for the third consecutive meeting and kept alive hopes for further action next year.
However, US markets are set for a weaker session after Oracle’s quarterly revenues figure disappointed investors.
FTSE 100 Live Thursday
- Oracle results disappoint
- Federal Reserve cuts rates
- Drax data centre plan
Market update: FTSE 100 holds firm amid tech jitters, Ashtead up 3%
10:11 , Graeme EvansUS-facing Rentokil Initial and JD Sports Fashion today fared well in the FTSE 100 index after the Federal Reserve kept alive hopes for further rate cuts in 2026.
Having delivered a third consecutive reduction to a range of 3.5%-3.75%, the central bank provided formal guidance pointing to one more rate cut next year.
However, the tone of Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell on the downside risks facing the labour market fuelled expectations of further cuts in 2026.
Leading Wall Street benchmarks traded higher, although the mood soured after the closing bell when Oracle Corp results reignited jitters over the AI trade.
A quarterly revenues miss and higher-than-expected capital expenditure projections meant Oracle shares dropped 11% in extended dealings.
The S&P 500 index rose by 0.7% last night but is forecast to lose 0.6% this afternoon after risk sentiment was dealt a blow by the Oracle figures.
The FTSE 100 index benefited from its old economy exposure as London’s top flight posted a rise of 15.14 points to 9670.67.
Pest control firm Rentokil Initial, which generates more than a third of its revenues in North America, rose 6.2p to 433.1p and transatlantic retailer JD Sports Fashion lifted 11p to 80p.
Sunbelt plant hire business Ashtead rallied 3% or 146p to 4931p at the top of the FTSE 100, while British Airways and Iberia owner IAG improved 5.9p to 391.5p.
Other stocks on the risers board included Diageo and Burberry after gains of 18p to 1620p and 15.5p to 1210p respectively.
Sainsbury’s also advanced by 3.4p to 320.4p after Citigroup backed the shares with a target price of 349p.
Ladbrokes owner Entain led the fallers board, down 29.8p to 730p after announcing that finance chief Rob Wood is to step down after 13 years with the group.
Associated British Foods also dropped by 37p to 2093p as shares began trading without the right to the most recent dividend.
Heathrow braced for record December
09:07 , Graeme EvansHeathrow today said it is “fully prepared” for its busiest December on record.
The number of passengers travelling through the west London airport’s four terminals is set to exceed the December 2024 total of 7.08 million.
It also forecast that the figure for Christmas Day alone will reach a new high, topping the 160,000 seen last year.
Figures today showed Heathrow recorded its busiest November on record with 6.63 million passengers, up 2.1% from a year ago.
FTSE 100 holds firm, AstraZeneca and Sainsbury's higher
08:33 , Graeme EvansThe FTSE 100 index edged 6.38 points higher at 9661.91, boosted by demand for London’s biggest stock after AstraZeneca rose 70p to 13,584p.
Other risers included Sainsbury’s, which advanced by 3.4p to 320.4p after Citigroup backed the shares with a target price of 349p.
Associated British Foods topped the fallers board, dropping by 2% or 45p to 2085p after its shares were marked ex-dividend.
Lloyds Banking Group also eased 1.2p to 93.7p and Marks & Spencer drifted 3.2p to 318p during another lacklustre session for the London market.
PZ Cussons scraps plan to sell Africa operation
08:27 , Graeme EvansImperial Leather and Carex maker PZ Cussons today said it will keep its troubled African business.
Manchester-based PZ Cussons said it received “significant” interest in the division but that these offers failed to recognise the value of the portfolio.
It will now lead an overhaul of the operation, while putting in place financial measures to guard against future currency risks and volatility.
The group launched a review of its entire African business in April last year.
This followed extreme inflation and devaluation of the Nigerian naira, which pushed the firm to a loss of £95.9 million in the year to May 31 2024.
Drax unveils data centre plan, lifts earnings guidance
08:20 , Graeme EvansEnergy company Drax today announced plans to develop a data centre at its Yorkshire site.
The FTSE 250 firm intends to repurpose existing infrastructure, raising the possibility that the 100MW centre could be running as soon as 2027.
Drax shares rose 2% or 19p to 780p as it also said full-year earnings will be “around the top end of consensus estimates” for 2025 after a positive second half of the year.
It said trading was boosted by the performance of its flexible generation, pellet production and biomass operations.
Oracle results sour mood after US interest rate cut
07:59 , Graeme EvansThe US Federal Reserve last night delivered a third consecutive interest rate cut, taking the target range for the fed funds rate to 3.5%-3.75%.
The move was accompanied by formal guidance showing that Wall Street should only expect one more rate cut in 2026.
However, this was softened by the tone of Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell in his subsequent press conference.
IG said: “The Fed chairman avoided giving guidance but highlighted downside risks to jobs, encouraging markets to keep pricing further cuts in 2026 despite unchanged official projections.”
US markets closed higher but are set for big falls today after Oracle Corp results dampened sentiment. According to futures trading, the S&P 500 index is seen dropping 0.8%.
The risk reverse mood also impacted the price of Bitcoin, which dropped 2% towards the $90,000 threshold.
Oracle shares fall after revenues miss
07:31 , Graeme EvansOracle shares last night fell more than 11% in dealings after the US closing bell as traders reacted to the cloud computing company’s second quarter results.
Revenue of $16.1 billion rose 14% in the three months to 30 November but came in marginally below Wall Street expectations. Cloud revenues lifted 33%.
Oracle further weighed on sentiment by increasing its capital expenditure guidance for the year.
The selling came even though its quarterly earnings per share figure of $2.26 comfortably beat forecasts, driven by the one-off impact of an investment disposal.
The results reignited Wall Street’s recent AI jitters, with the Nasdaq seen falling by more than 1% at today’s opening bell.
Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Matt Britzman said: “Markets quickly looked past the massive earnings beat, driven by a one-off asset sale, and focused on the rising capital expenditure and weak cash flows.
“Oracle has been at the epicentre of the AI financing debate, lacking the mammoth cash flows of the more traditional cloud giants (Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft).
“As usual, the baby’s going out with the bathwater, and the entire futures market is trading lower – likely a mix of AI funding fears coupled with the slow realisation that we may not see another rate cut for some time.”
US markets higher after rate cut, Oracle shares down 11%
07:03 , Graeme EvansLeading Wall Street benchmarks closed higher last night after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by another quarter point to a three-year low.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.1% and the S&P 500 index lifted by 0.7%, even though policymakers only signalled one further cut in 2026.
However, US markets are set to come under pressure today after Oracle second quarter results caused its shares to fall 11% in dealings after the closing bell.
The Nasdaq, which closed 0.3% higher last night, is seen falling by more than 1% when trading resumes later.
In Asia, the Nikkei 225 fell 0.9% after SoftBank shares dropped sharply on the back of the Oracle disappointment.
The FTSE 100 index, which closed up 13.52 points at 9655.53 prior to the rates decision, is seen opening marginally lower in today’s session.
