FTSE 100 Live Friday
- LandSec earnings rise
- Japan economy contracts
- Workspace flags headwinds
Market update: FTSE 100 progress continues, LandSec and Future fall on results
10:06 , Graeme EvansAstraZeneca and British American Tobacco today provided fresh support for the FTSE 100 index at the end of a positive week for global markets.
Their advances of 2% and smaller gains for Vodafone and Diageo helped London top flight to rise 24.28 points to a fresh six-week high of 8658.03.
The mood benefited from the US handover after the de-escalation of the US-China trade war helped the S&P 500 index rise for a fourth session in a row.
The leading US benchmark is close to a bull market territory, having risen by 18.75% from its tariffs low point of just a month ago.
Today’s advance for European markets came despite weaker trading in Asia after figures showed Japan’s economy shrunk 0.7% on an annual basis in the first quarter.
This compared with the 0.3% decline expected, while the quarter-on-quarter fall of 0.2% represented a big reverse on the growth of 0.6% at the end of 2024.
The first contraction in a year was blamed on a big drop in exports as well as lower levels of government spending.
The Nikkei 225 recovered from a poor start to close broadly unchanged, while the Hang Seng index drifted 0.5%.
In London, the top flight benefited from a recovery by the drugs sector after GSK rose 24p to 1386.5p and AstraZeneca lifted 160p to 10,302p.
The defensive-leaning session also saw Imperial Brands advance 37p to 2704p, British American Tobacco by 47p to 3124p and Tesco by 3.5p to 367.2p.
The best performance in the FTSE 100 was by wealth manager St James’s Place, which rose 4% or 48p to 1119p.
On the fallers board, Land Securities declined 13p to 590.5p despite posting annual results showing a “very strong performance” by its Central London and retail-focused portfolio.
Like-for-like rental income grew 5% and occupancy improved to 97.2% in the year to 31 March, with the key metric of net asset value up 2% to 874p a share.
Landsec’s portfolio includes office space, retail destinations and landmarks such as the White Rose shopping centre in Leeds, the Bluewater shopping centre in Kent, and the Piccadilly Lights in London.
It said demand for “modern, sustainable office space” in London remained strong, and that brands continue to focus on “fewer, but bigger and better stores in key locations”.
Peel Hunt reiterated a price target of 700p after noting that earnings and the dividend had grown in line with City expectations.
The broker said: “Operationally, Landsec has delivered an upbeat assessment of its markets, and continues to target about 20% earnings per share growth by the 2030 financial year.”
In the FTSE 250 index, transatlantic media business Future fell 8% or 60p to 685p after it adopted a cautious stance on the outlook for the rest of the financial year.
The publisher of Marie Claire and Country Life said it expects a low single-digit decline in 2025 organic revenue, having posted a 1% fall in today’s half-year results.
Future, whose other operations include the GoCompare price comparison business, reported a 5% fall in adjusted operating profit to £100.7 million on revenues of £378.4 million.
Following a weaker performance in March, it said US direct digital advertising returned to growth in April.
It added: “At this stage, given ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty, the group believes it is prudent to adopt a more cautious view on the second half.”
Workspace cuts guidance amid economic headwinds
10:00 , Graeme EvansFlexible office company Workspace today flagged a £7 million profit headwind from the impact of higher labour costs and larger companies leaving offices.
The company’s FTSE 250-listed shares slumped by 11%, or 50p to 404p.
Workspace owns a portfolio of about 70 properties across London and the south-east of England, providing units to more than 4,000 businesses.
It had previously warned about the impact of a lower opening rent roll, further large unit vacations and additional costs associated with macroeconomic pressures including higher national insurance and higher living wages.
Ahead of its strategy update and full year results on 5 June, Workspace said it calculated the combined impact of these factors on the 2026 year will be a trading profit headwind of about £7 million.
This is against the current company-compiled consensus within a range of £66 million and £72 million.
FTSE 100 maintains progress, Land Securities lower
08:24 , Graeme EvansHeavyweight stocks including Shell and AstraZeneca have helped the FTSE 100 index to rise by a bigger-than-expected 37.42 points to 8671.18.
The six-week high for London’s top flight followed a rise of 0.6% in the previous session.
Shell lifted 25.5p to 2498.5p, AstraZeneca rallied 136p to 10,278p and GSK advanced 24p to 1386.5p.
National Grid shares continued their post-results improvement, adding another 11p to 1057p after Barclays raised its price target to 1250p.
On the fallers board, Land Securities slipped 12p to 591.5p after posting annual results while Rolls-Royce reversed 8.2p to 807.8p.
Rich list reveals drop in number of UK billionaires
07:34 , Graeme EvansThe UK has suffered the biggest fall in billionaires on record after Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ non-dom tax crackdown, according to the Sunday Times Rich List.
The annual list of Britain’s wealthiest people was once again topped by the Hinduja family, who are worth more than £35 billion.
The number of billionaires fell to 156 this year from 165 in 2024, representing the sharpest decline in the Sunday Times Rich List’s 37-year-history.
Land Securities lifts full-year earnings, occupancy rises
07:30 , Graeme EvansLand Securities today said its Central London and retail-focused portfolio delivered a “very strong performance” after like-for-like rental income grew 5% and occupancy improved to 97.2% in the year to 31 March.
The Piccadilly Lights owner said underlying earnings increased £3 million to £374 million, while the company recorded a bottom-line profit of £393 million compared with a loss of £341 million a year earlier.
The valuation of the portfolio rose 1.1%, in line with the company’s view a year ago that yields were set to stabilise and values for the best assets would return to growth.
It reported 8% rental uplifts on relettings and renewals in London and major retail, alongside continued strong leasing momentum since the year-end.
Chief executive Mark Allan said: “Owning the right real estate has never been more important and, with a very healthy pipeline of occupier demand, this trend looks set to continue, providing a clear trajectory for further near and medium-term EPS growth.”
FTSE 100 set for steady start, Japan GDP disappoints
07:07 , Graeme EvansA larger-than-expected contraction in Japan’s first quarter GDP figure today set the tone for a downbeat session on Asia markets.
The economy shrunk 0.7% on an annual basis compared with the 0.3% decline expected. The quarter-on-quarter fall of 0.2% followed growth of 0.6% in the final three months of 2024.
The Nikkei 225 has recovered from initial weakness to stand 0.1% lower, while the Hang Seng index and Shanghai Composite are also in the red.
The FTSE 100 index is set to the end the week on a steady note, having closed yesterday’s session up 0.6% at 8633.75. IG’s opening call is for a rise of 26 points.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7%, which compared with a gain of 0.4% for the S&P 500 index and 0.2% decline for the Nasdaq Composite.
