FTSE 100 soars to two-month high in huge boost to UK stock market
The FTSE was climbing within minutes of trading getting underway today in London and has reached dizzying heights.
The FTSE 100 at 10:45am was up 74.76 at 8360.47 as the index surged to a two-month high in a major boost to UK market performance.
The FTSE came screaming out of the blocks first thing this morning, when it was up 45 points despite trading just being minutes underway.
By 9.45am, The FTSE 100 index at 9:45am was up 67.29 at 8353.00. It continued to climb up to 74.76 points ahead with Prudential and other life insurers leading the charge, along with property developers including Segro.
It comes as the Bank of England prepares for its decision on the base rate, scheduled to drop at midday on Thursday, hopes of a cut for desperate homeowners.
With mortgage approvals this morning revealed to be relatively steady, property owners will hope that that the Bank will finally end its 16-year high of 5.25 percent, especially with inflation last recorded as being at the two percent target.
Don't miss...
Supermarkets unlikely to be misleading customers over loyalty prices - CMA [LATEST]
Co-op Bank profits shrink as it hails 'landmark' 2024 ahead of Coventry merger [LATEST]
Drivers are still 'paying too much' for their fuel, says watchdog [LATEST]
Martin Lewis' baffling X question about cars leaves followers scratching heads [LATEST]
Todays FTSE surge comes after a strong performance yesterday, with short-sellers making their impact felt in market circles.
Pierre Veyret, technical analyst at ActivTrades, told YahooFinance: "Stocks edged slightly higher for the last trading session of the week in Europe, paring some of yesterday's losses ahead of critical macro data in the US.
"In a break from the negative market sentiment of recent days, the corrective moves are primarily due to short-sellers buying back some of their position following the global rout seen this week on equity markets.
"With a lack of significant changes in market drivers, we see today's slight rebound as a technical price action rather than something bigger and more directional."
It's not all good news for the UK economy, however, as the pound has weakened against the US dollar as investors showed caution ahead of an announcement by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, which is expected to address a £20 billion public spending black hole, and the Bank of England's upcoming interest rate decision.
Sterling's value dipped by 0.4 percent against the US dollar on Monday morning, at about 1.281, hitting a new near three-week low.
The pound was also down about 0.15 percent against the euro at 1.1835, suggesting some caution among traders.
Currency movements typically indicate the reaction of financial markets to events that could impact the wider economic landscape.
Later on Monday, Rachel Reeves is expected to announce plans to plug a hole in the UK's public spending that she will say was left by the previous government.
