Greg Secker – U.K. Market update brought to you by Traders University

UK markets closed higher on Friday, with the FTSE 100 index registering gains for the third consecutive week, as investors snapped up shares of miners and oil producers, following higher commodity prices. Miners, Anglo American, Rio Tinto and Xstrata, rallied between 2.8% and 3.9%, as copper, lead, nickel and tin all increased in London trading. Record gold prices and bullish silver prices benefited precious metal miners such as Randgold Resources and Fresnillo. Oil producers, BP, Tullow Oil, and Royal Dutch Shell, added between 0.8% and 1.7%, as light crude oil prices for May delivery rose 2.3% to settle at $112.79 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the best settlement for oil since September 2008.
FTSE 100 gained 0.8% or 48.4 points to 6,055.8. FTSE 250 rose 0.6% or 66.8 points to 11,726.2.

UK markets rallied on Friday, with the FTSE 100 index finishing above the above key psychological level of 6000, as banks and oil related stocks recorded gains. Banks, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland Group and Lloyds Banking Group, added between 3.8% and 5.0%, as investors speculated that the Irish government’s plan to increase the capital level of the nation’s lenders would help senior bondholders to avoid taking any losses for now. Oil related stocks, John Wood Group, Tullow Oil and Petrofac, gained between 1.8% and 5.1%, as oil prices rose. Shares of BP, Premier Foods and Victrex benefitted from broker upgrades. Adding to the positive sentiment, US economy added more jobs than forecast in March.
FTSE 100 gained 1.7% or 101.2 points to 6,009.9. FTSE 250 climbed 1.0% or 116.8 points to 11,708.7.

UK markets closed mixed yesterday, as losses in banks were offset by gains in miners. Banks, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland and HSBC, lost between 0.3% and 1.3%, as Standard & Poor’s downgraded Greece and Portugal’s debt ratings. Banks were also weighed down, after Italy’s UBI Banca announced a €1 billion capital hike to help repay a government bond, reigniting worries over the European debt crisis. BP dropped 2.2%, affected by a report that the company’s managers might face manslaughter charges, following the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. However, miners, Vedanta Resources, Rio Tinto and Kazakhmys, climbed between 0.1% and 2.9%, on the back of firm base metal prices. Wolseley gained 2.1%, after the company reported a 64% rise in its half-year earnings and reinstated its dividend. FTSE 100 gained 0.5% or 27.7 points to 5,932.2. FTSE 250 fell marginally to close at 11,636.4.

UK markets closed higher on Friday, with the FTSE 100 index registering its biggest weekly gain since November 2010, as consumer related stocks and oil producers recorded gains. Consumer related stocks, Reckitt Benckiser Group, SABMiller and Unilever, climbed between 0.9% and 3.1%, after BofA Merrill Lynch upgraded Reckitt Benckiser Group to “Buy” from “Neutral”. Oil producers, Royal Dutch Shell – B, Petrofac and BP, rose between 0.6% and 1.5%, on the back of firm oil prices. Among other stocks, Invensys advanced 3.5%, rebounding from its previous session losses, while Sainsbury added 1.5%, as Natixis upgraded the stock to “Neutral” from “Reduce”. However, gains were restricted by losses in retailers and some of miners. FTSE 100 gained 0.3% to 5,900.8. FTSE 250 added 0.2% to 11,629.3.

UK markets closed higher yesterday, led by gains in retailers, miners and oil producers. Retailers, Kingfisher, Next and WM Morrison Supermarkets, climbed between 0.6% and 7.2%, after Kingfisher and Next reported their earnings updates that surpassed market expectations. Retail stocks also rose after Deutsche Bank took a positive stance on the sector. Miners, Rio Tinto, Antofagasta and ENRC, advanced between 1.3% and 2.5%, amid hopes that reconstruction opportunities in Japan would spur demand for raw materials. Banks also traded higher, with Barclays up 1.3%, after Credit Suisse reiterated its “Outperform” rating on the stock. FTSE 100 gained 1.5% or 85.0 points to 5,880.9. FTSE 250 added 1.4% or 158.2 points to 11,605.5.