London midday: Stocks flat as FTSE breaches 9,000; US earnings eyed

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were still steady by midday on Tuesday, with the top-flight index breaching the 9,000 mark for the first time as investors welcomed better-than-expected Chinese GDP data despite US tariffs.

The FTSE 100 was flat at 9,000.06, having hit an intraday high of 9,016.98.

Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said: "The FTSE 100 has passed a key milestone and is above the 9,000 level for the first time, proving how resilient the UK index has been to economic uncertainty, tariff risks and a weaker dollar.

"US CPI will be released later this afternoon, along with a raft of US earnings reports from top tier banks, including JP Morgan, Citigroup and Wells Fargo."

Brooks also said that news the US has relaxed restrictions on exports of Nvidia's H20 chip to China has boosted risk sentiment.

"This is huge news for the company and could lead to a raft of earnings upgrades for the second half of this year," she said. "It may also benefit the US semiconductor space more broadly, as hopes rise that export restrictions to China get lifted for more than just Nvidia."

Data released earlier by China's National Bureau of Statistics showed the economy grew faster than expected in the second quarter despite pressure from US tariffs.

GDP expanded by 5.2% in the three months to June, beating estimates of 5.1%, but slower than the first quarter's 5.4%.

On home shores, industry figures showed that retail sales jumped in June, fuelled by demand for summer foods and electric fans as shoppers tried to beat the heat.

According to the latest data from the British Retail Consortium and KPMG, UK total retail sales rose 3.1% year-on-year last month, compared to June 2024's 0.2% slip.

Within that, food sales jumped 4.1%, while non-food sales - which fell 1.9% a year earlier - rose 2.2%.

The BRC said sales of electric fans and of sports and leisure equipment did especially well, boosted by the hot weather and start of key summer sporting events such as Wimbledon.

The hike in food sales was partially attributed to the recent rise in grocery inflation, which has been rising steadily through 2025.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: "Retail sales heated up in June, with both food and non-food performing well. The soaring temperatures increased sales of electric fans.

"Food sales remained strong, though this was in part driven by food inflation."

Looking forward and she sounded a note of caution, however: "The outlook is not all bright and sunny. Retailers are watching [the] government closely for details of the upcoming business rates reform. If it includes shops within the new higher rates threshold, many retailers will be forced to rethink investment plans."

In equity markets, Experian jumped to the top of the FTSE 100 as it posted a 12% increase in first-quarter revenue, with 10% growth in North America, which accounts for 67% of group revenue.

IntegraFin surged as the Transact owner hailed a strong third quarter, with net inflows surpassing �1.2bn for the second consecutive quarter and up 84% on the same period a year earlier.

Trustpilot rallied as it upgraded full-year margin guidance following a solid first-half performance, while animal genetics firm Genus rose after a full-year trading update.

Currys gained as Citi reiterated its 'buy' rating on the shares and lifted the price target to 150p from 121p, saying that iD Mobile and buybacks are set to provide material upside.

On the downside, Barratt Redrow tumbled as the housebuilder warned that both profits and completions would be lower this year. Updating on trading for the year to 29 June, the company said it had been a "solid performance", despite a "challenging" market backdrop.

However, looking to the current year, and the firm warned that homebuyer confidence remained "fragile", with total home completions likely to be down year-on-year, in the range of 17,200 to 17,800. It also said profits would take a �98m hit, due to new safety charges.

Peers fell sharply, with Persimmon, Berkeley Group, Taylor Wimpey, Bellway and Vistry all lower.

Convatec shares slid after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in the US suggested in a draft payment proposal to cut spending on skin-substitute products, citing "abusive pricing practices".

Convatec said in a statement that if the proposal is implemented in its current form, the potential year-on-year headwind to FY26 revenue could be approximately 1-2% of group revenue. Convatec makes InnovaMatrix, a porcine placental-derived extra-cellular matrix for treatment of chronic, surgical and trauma wounds.

Elsewhere, discount retailer B&M European Value Retail also suffered heavy losses as its first-quarter results missed expectations.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 9,000.06 0.02%

FTSE 250 (MCX) 21,837.81 0.52%

techMARK (TASX) 5,206.68 0.47%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Experian (EXPN) 4,036.00p 4.75%

WPP (WPP) 427.50p 3.11%

CRH (CDI) (CRH) 7,164.00p 2.20%

Bunzl (BNZL) 2,318.00p 1.85%

Spirax Group (SPX) 6,120.00p 1.66%

Diploma (DPLM) 4,974.00p 1.43%

Melrose Industries (MRO) 534.00p 1.41%

Rentokil Initial (RTO) 348.80p 1.40%

Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) 2,016.00p 1.36%

Ashtead Group (AHT) 4,847.00p 1.34%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 389.00p -6.60%

Convatec Group (CTEC) 248.60p -4.02%

Fresnillo (FRES) 1,483.00p -3.83%

JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 84.86p -1.46%

Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,080.00p -1.46%

Kingfisher (KGF) 276.60p -1.39%

Persimmon (PSN) 1,201.00p -1.36%

BAE Systems (BA.) 1,887.50p -1.20%

Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,931.00p -1.15%

Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 110.35p -1.08%

FTSE 250 - Risers

IntegraFin Holding (IHP) 371.50p 14.48%

Trustpilot Group (TRST) 282.60p 11.88%

Genus (GNS) 2,405.00p 7.61%

Hilton Food Group (HFG) 872.00p 3.20%

Ocado Group (OCDO) 239.90p 3.09%

Zigup (ZIG) 349.00p 2.50%

Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 328.80p 2.49%

Foresight Group Holdings Limited NPV (FSG) 463.50p 2.43%

JTC (JTC) 867.00p 2.36%

Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 2,050.00p 2.24%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 234.90p -8.85%

4Imprint Group (FOUR) 3,600.00p -3.10%

Ithaca Energy (ITH) 162.40p -2.17%

IG Group Holdings (IGG) 1,059.00p -2.04%

QinetiQ Group (QQ.) 500.50p -1.57%

Grafton Group Ut (CDI) (GFTU) 911.10p -1.50%

Hochschild Mining (HOC) 284.60p -1.39%

Travis Perkins (TPK) 566.00p -1.22%

Kier Group (KIE) 204.50p -1.21%

W.A.G Payment Solutions (WPS) 86.60p -1.14%