FTSE 100 Opens Higher After Weak US Jobs Data
The FTSE 100 opened 16.19 points higher at 10,478.15 on Monday, following weaker-than-expected US jobs data that reduced expectations of another Federal Reserve interest rate hike. Brent crude futures fell 0.81% to USD 101.4 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) declined 1.58% to USD 89.67 per barrel. Sterling weakened slightly to USD 1.3207 early Monday, down from USD 1.3233 at the end of Friday's trading session. Against the euro, it rose to EUR 1.1800 from EUR 1.1750.
Among the top gainers, Ithaca Energy surged 2.32% to 281.80p after announcing a deal to acquire a portfolio of conventional offshore oil assets from Suncor Energy for USD 860 million in upfront cash, with up to USD 250 million in contingent consideration. The acquisition includes a 48% operated interest in the Terra Nova field and non-operated interests in the White Rose fields, adding 103 million barrels of oil equivalent in proved and probable reserves and delivering average production of 30,000 boe/d between 2027 and 2031. Other notable gainers included BT Group, up 1.83% to 199.90p, and London Stock Exchange Group, climbing 1.46% to 8,208p.
On the downside, 3i Group fell 3.48% to 2,466p, while IG Group Holdings dropped 3.08% to 959.50p. BT also made headlines by acquiring telecommunications firm TalkTalk and its wholesale arm PlatformX Communications (PXC) out of administration on a debt-free basis. The deal is estimated to cost BT GBP 400 million, including transaction fees, working capital, a GBP 60 million trading loss, and GBP 100 million in uncollected Openreach revenues. Lidl reported a 10% increase in operating profit to GBP 345 million and a 10.8% rise in revenue to GBP 13 billion in the year to February, driven by a 23% increase in users of its Lidl Plus scheme.
Globally, US stocks rose on Friday, with the Dow adding 250 points to close at 51,176.46, the S&P 500 climbing 0.7% to 7,722.72, and the NASDAQ Composite rallying 1.2% to 27,190.86. In Asia on Monday, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 gained 2.4% to 68,946.86, while China’s Shanghai Composite advanced 0.31%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell slightly by 0.020%, and South Korea’s Kospi edged up by 0.46%. In India, both the Nifty 50 and the Sensex rose by 0.17% and 0.19%, respectively.