London close: FTSE 100 ekes out new record after quiet session

(Sharecast News) - The FTSE 100 held on to mild gains on Monday, finishing marginally above last week's record high after a quiet session with Wall Street closed for the day.

The FTSE 100 settled just 0.25% higher but still managed to notch a new all-time closing high of 10,472.75, slightly ahead of its previous record of 10,472.11 set on 11 February.

Presidents' Day in the US kept Wall Street closed, while the Lunar New Year holidays led to thin trading across Asian markets overnight.

Markets across Europe were mixed, with decent gains in Madrid and Zurich, losses in Frankfurt and flat performances in Paris and Milan.

"It has been a disjointed start to the week for global markets thanks to the Chinese and US holidays which have essentially rendered Monday a write-off for most investors," said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG.

"Though it must be said that the dip-buying reflex remains strong, demonstrated by today's rebound in UK bank shares, helping to lift the FTSE 100 throughout the day."

Monday also marked a relatively subdued start to what will be a busy week in London, with earnings due from miners Rio Tinto, BHP, Antofagasta, Glencore and Anglo American, while UK jobs data, inflation and retail sales figures will also be eyed.

In other news, the S&P Global UK Consumer Sentiment Index inched up to 44.8 in February from 44.6 in January. This was the highest level in three months but sentiment "remains in the doldrums", S&P said, with the index firmly below the neutral 50-point level, remaining close to its lowest levels seen over the past two years.

Meanwhile, Rightmove data showed that house price growth stalled in February after the strongest increase in over a decade the previous month, though the outlook for demand still remains bright as affordability continues to improve. The average price of a newly listed home for sale was �368,019 in February, down �12 over the month (-0.0%) following a 2.8% surge in January.

Banking stocks provide support

NatWest rose 5%, having slumped on Friday despite reporting a better-than-expected increase in full-year profits and lifting performance targets. Banks in general were firmer, with Barclays, Lloyds, HSBC and Standard Chartered also finishing higher.

Defence firms Babcock, BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce and Qinetiq gained following a report that Downing Street is considering making a significant increase in defence spending. According to the BBC, the government is mulling over the idea of meeting an existing spending target earlier than planned at a potential cost of billions of pounds.

Beazley nudged lower as it said the deadline for Zurich Insurance to make a firm takeover bid has been extended. The Lloyd's of London insurer announced earlier this month that the two parties had reached an agreement in principle on the terms of an �8bn takeover by Zurich.

Housebuilders fell after the Rightmove data, with Taylor Wimpey, Berkeley and Barratt all weaker. Barratt was also knocked lower by a downgrade to 'add' from 'buy' at Peel Hunt.

Pinewood Technologies tanked 32% on the FTSE 250 after private equity firm Apax Partners withdrew its �575m offer for the automotive service provider on Friday, citing prevailing challenging market conditions.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,472.75 0.25%

FTSE 250 (MCX) 23,362.68 -0.28%

techMARK (TASX) 6,057.94 -0.07%

FTSE 100 - Risers

NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 607.80p 4.76%

Melrose Industries (MRO) 667.00p 3.89%

Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,341.00p 3.23%

BAE Systems (BA.) 2,029.00p 3.10%

Metlen Energy & Metals (MTLN) 36.30p 2.98%

Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,298.00p 2.12%

Airtel Africa (AAF) 336.60p 2.12%

3i Group (III) 3,497.00p 1.78%

Prudential (PRU) 1,086.00p 1.59%

Barclays (BARC) 461.05p 1.55%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Mondi (MNDI) 913.80p -4.27%

Smurfit Westrock (DI) (SWR) 3,595.00p -4.18%

St James's Place (STJ) 1,197.50p -3.85%

Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 374.50p -3.70%

Relx plc (REL) 2,174.00p -3.68%

Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 4,302.00p -2.98%

Experian (EXPN) 2,477.00p -2.40%

The Sage Group (SGE) 788.20p -2.38%

Imperial Brands (IMB) 3,219.00p -2.10%

Croda International (CRDA) 2,997.00p -1.93%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Princes Group (PRN) 444.00p 10.59%

Raspberry PI Holdings (RPI) 305.00p 7.55%

Ithaca Energy (ITH) 196.80p 4.02%

Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,419.00p 3.58%

Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 314.80p 3.28%

Helios Towers (HTWS) 196.40p 2.61%

Drax Group (DRX) 872.50p 2.53%

Avon Technologies (AVON) 1,740.00p 2.47%

Endeavour Mining (EDV) 4,686.00p 2.45%

Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 294.50p 2.26%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Pinewood Technologies Group (PINE) 298.00p -31.73%

Applied Nutrition (APN) 224.50p -5.47%

Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) 128.80p -5.29%

Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 60.55p -4.34%

Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 285.80p -3.97%

WPP (WPP) 262.20p -3.92%

Trustpilot Group (TRST) 132.10p -3.29%

The Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited (TRIG) 67.00p -3.18%

Oxford Biomedica (OXB) 799.00p -2.92%

Ashmore Group (ASHM) 241.40p -2.66%