Closing comments from David Jones, Chief Market Strategist, IG Index:
A bounce back in the London market sees the FTSE 100 up by around 60 points in the last few minutes of trading.
Banking led the way for London today with the likes of RBS and HBOS up by more than 7% so far. There seemed to be little fundamental news flow behind the banking rally. For now, traders seem to be viewing it as a long overdue, oversold rally. Although banks topped the FTSE leader board, they still had not quite recouped all of yesterday’s losses – probably leaving many with the view that this was just a chance to sell at slightly better prices, rather than the start of a major recovery.
Afternoon sentiment was helped by a strong start in the US markets. Retail sales in May rose in the US by twice as much as the market was expecting, spurring its markets into a rally that pushed towards yesterday’s highs. While today’s strength was a welcome break in what has seemed to be relentless weakness in the UK market for the best part of three weeks, many felt it still represented just a pause in the recent trend. Traders will be waiting to see if today’s gains can be built on. Although with the worries still surrounding banks, retailers and homebuilders, the nagging worry at the moment is always that the next raft of bad news may be just around the corner.
The above comments do not constitute investment advice and neither IG Index nor Clean Financial accept any responsibility for any use that may be made of them.
Advert:IG Index >>
Live Prices and Charts, No Commissions, No Fees. Spread Trade on Shares, Indices, Forex, Commodities and more >>
details.
UK Market Comment, 11 Jun
Closing comments from Anthony Grech, Market Analyst, IG Index:
Going into the final few minutes of trading in London, it is another day of losses that sees the FTSE 100 back to levels not seen in more than two months.
Once again it has been property and retail that have done the damage for the market with a slew of downgrades weighing on these sectors throughout the day. The banking sector has also played its part in contributing to the sea of red, with RBS and Alliance & Leicester just two stocks that have notched up losses above 5% on the day so far. In early New York trading the US markets have also taken a significant knock, with traders probably rightly twitchy ahead of the Beige Book report due out from the Fed after European markets have closed.
Coming into Wednesday, the 5800 level on the FTSE was being watched as a potential line in the sand for the market, having propped up short term weakness back in April. This area did help the market in early trading but the index went through it like a hot knife through butter in the afternoon. Although we are seeing the FTSE clawing back some of its earlier losses many had viewed 5800 as the key "bounce or bust" level for the UK market. The fact that the index has broken below has left the more bearish traders out there weighing up the increased possibility that a slide back to the lows for the year, around 5400, could well be just a matter of time. Based on current momentum the more pessimistic view for some is that they may not have to wait too long.
How and where to spread bet on:
The FTSE 100 and where to find free FTSE charts, real-time prices etc >> FTSE 100 Spread Betting RBS and where to find free Barclays charts, real-time prices etc >> RBS Spread Betting
The above comments do not constitute investment advice and neither IG Index nor Clean Financial accept any responsibility for any use that may be made of them.
Advert:IG Index >>
Live Prices and Charts, No Commissions, No Fees. Spread Trade on Shares, Indices, Forex, Commodities and more >>
details.
'Spread Betting Markets 11-12 June 2008' by DJ, updated 12-Jun-08
For related pages also see:
UK Market Trading, updated 04-Sep-08
The Late Trading Update - A quick look at the markets as they close with insight from one of the leading Spread Betting Companies...read article. UK Market Spread Trading, updated 02-Sep-08
Free spread betting market updates - A daily look at the spread betting markets as they close with views and opinion from one of the leading Spread Trading Companies...read article. UK Spread Trading 20-21 August 2008, updated 21-Aug-08
In the FTSE 250, investors were cheered by news that sales had not worsened in Persimmons half-year results, with strong gains for the housebuilder along with...read article. Spread Betting UK 18-19 August 2008, updated 19-Aug-08
Investors were cautiously upbeat in the morning session, buying mining shares but offloading travel stocks, with British Airways and cruise ship firm Carnival among those suffering. And, despite...read article. UK FTSE 100 Comment 14-15 August 2008, updated 15-Aug-08
Weaker metal and oil prices tore at the value of eight heavyweight miners, with Kazakhmys dropping 6% and Antofagasta down...read article. UK Spread Trading 12-13 August 2008, updated 13-Aug-08
Kings indication that rate cuts were not on the agenda any time soon cost Barclays, Lloyds TSB, HBOS and Standard Chartered, which all fell...read article. Spread Betting UK 8-11 August 2008, updated 11-Aug-08
Meanwhile, housebuilders in the FTSE 250 rose on the back of positive noises from Goldman Sachs, which claimed investors could benefit if share prices came into line with companies assets. Barratt Developments, Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon were all...read article. UK Spread Trading 6-7 August 2008, updated 07-Aug-08
Todays focus was on Barclays as the bank reported first half profits down by about a third compared to the same time last year. It is a sign of the new found positive sentiment surrounding banking at the moment that this was...read article. Spread Betting UK 4-5 August 2008, updated 05-Aug-08
With the price of oil still weak, and with a retest of the $100 mark not looking out of the question, it could set up something of a tug of war for the index over the next few weeks. A lower oil price is of course...read article. Spread Betting News 1 Aug 2008, updated 01-Aug-08
Todays drag has been the mining stocks, with 5% falls from the likes of Rio Tinto and Xstrata weighing on the index and offsetting smaller gains in banking and retail. Mining has historically helped to prop...read article. Spread Trader News 29-30 July 2008, updated 30-Jul-08
After Tuesdays strong performance in the USA, the FTSE was always going to open higher and not even downbeat news from banking and...read article. Spread Bettor News 25-28 July 2008, updated 28-Jul-08
The markets do seem to be somewhat becalmed at the moment, maybe a welcome break from some of the volatility experienced earlier this month. For the FTSE 100 traders still view the 5275/5300 area as the big support for...read article. Spread Trader News 23-24 July 2008, updated 24-Jul-08
The stock market has been under pressure for most of the day with any short rallies proving to be unsustainable. Mining and oil stocks have been particularly hard hit, with commodities continuing the...read article. Spread Bettor News 21-22 July 2008, updated 22-Jul-08
London was expected to open lower on Tuesday morning after poor numbers from American Express disappointed US investors after the close on Monday, but a surprisingly downbeat update by Vodafone added to the negative sentiment first thing. The telecoms company, seldom the most exciting stock in...read article. Spread Trader News 17-18 July 2008, updated 18-Jul-08
The bounce back has continued today, with another strong performance by the banking sector helping to keep sentiment positive. Once again RBS and Barclays have managed to notch up gains in excess of 8% so far, helping to offset...read article. Spread Bettor News 15-16 July 2008, updated 16-Jul-08
Wednesday morning saw the FTSE index slip back below 5100 to trade at its lowest levels in more than three years. Once again it was the banking sector doing the damage with RBS and HBOS both registering double digit percentage losses in early trading. However, so far the afternoon is showing a turnaround as maybe traders started eyeing the 5,000 mark as...read article. Spread Trader News 11-14 July 2008, updated 14-Jul-08
After the weekend news surrounding the rescue of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the USA the market was always primed to open up this morning. In addition, the takeover bid by Santander for Alliance & Leicester didn't do any harm and with speculation of a potential suitor for ITV it was a little bit like the good old days of the bull market with...read article. Spread Betting Markets 9-10 July 2008, updated 10-Jul-08
It was always going to be a weak start to trading with significant falls on Wall Street on Wednesday taking their toll right from the open. The UK market managed to rally by lunch time but a weaker start again to the...read article. Spread Trading 7-8 July 2008, updated 07-Jul-08
Much has been made of the fact that with the FTSE 20% below its highs, it is now an 'official' bear market. But a look at the broader indices, such as the FTSE 250 which is already back to levels not seen since 2005, probably gives a...read article. Spread Betting Markets 3-4 July 2008, updated 04-Jul-08
So far the FTSE has shed almost 16% already this year, and with thin-skinned banks ever susceptible to negative sentiment, it is not unimaginable to see real test of the years lows in the 5300 region moving into next week. The banking sector seems as risky as ever, with investors only too happy to...read article. Spread Betting 1-2 July 2008, updated 02-Jul-08
Tuesday saw the Dow Jones index briefly slip to fresh lows for the year, the broader US index the S&P 500 and our own FTSE continue to hold for now above the 2008 lows. With US unemployment...read article. FTSE Spread Betting 27-30 June 2008, updated 30-Jun-08
Takeover talks in the mining and telecoms sectors helped propel the FTSE to 5568 by lunchtime, with higher metal prices and rumours in the FT that Lakshmi Mittal could be entering the takeover battle for Rio Tinto adding 2.3% to Rio Tinto and 1.6% to rival BHP Billiton. Other heavyweights including...read article. Spread Betting 25-26 June 2008, updated 26-Jun-08
Financials have played a significant part in todays rally, with Barclays confirming plans to boost its balance sheet being well received. This helped sector peers RBS and HBOS notch up gains in excess of 5% on the day so far. Some traders have viewed the positive reaction as...read article. Spread Trading Markets 23-24 June 2008, updated 24-Jun-08
With the onslaught of poor economic news that has flowed steadily over the past few weeks it is maybe not too surprising that for June so far, the FTSE is a good 400 points lower than where we started. At the moment rallies are proving...read article. Spread Betting Markets 19-20 June 2008, updated 20-Jun-08
HBOS was among the worst hit in the banking sector thanks to several earnings downgrades from brokers including Panmure Gordon. HBOS rivals followed suit, dragging the FTSE down, while rising...read article. Spread Betting Markets 17-18 June 2008, updated 18-Jun-08
Property stocks once again were amongst the days biggest losers with Persimmon off by 8% so far. In the first hour or so of trading, the Dow Jones has continued yesterdays weakness. Slipping back to levels not seen in almost three months. All this means that the FTSE 100 is almost back to...read article. Spread Betting Markets 13-16 June 2008, updated 16-Jun-08
The big news today was confirmation from Barclays that it is considering selling new shares in a fund raising exercise...but at a level above the current quoted price. This saw the shares up by more than 10% in...read article. Spread Betting Markets 11-12 June 2008, updated 12-Jun-08
Banking led the way for London today with the likes of RBS and HBOS up by more than 7% so far. There seemed to be little fundamental news flow behind the banking rally. For now, traders seem to be viewing it as a long overdue, oversold rally. Although banks...read article. Spread Trade UK 9 Jun 10 Jun 2008, updated 10-Jun-08
House builder Persimmon was the stand out loser, off by more than 9% so far and trading at a level that has seen its share price halve for this year alone. Like many of its sector peers, the share price of Persimmon has been in decline since early 2007 so has been something of a leading indicator for the weakness in UK property prices. On this basis, many would assume that...read article. Spread Bet 5 Jun 6 Jun 2008, updated 06-Jun-08
Going into the last few minutes of trading the FTSE 100 is pushing to new lows for the day. It has been a volatile day of trading for the UK market with the index up by around 80 points in the morning and then down by the same amount this afternoon. The damage was done by the...read article. Spread Betting 3 Jun 4 Jun 2008, updated 04-Jun-08
After yesterdays weakness throughout the banking sector, sparked by the Bradford and Bingley announcement, its maybe something of a surprise that a bank tops the blue-chip gainers for the day; with RBS up by around 7% so far. There are a few...read article. Spread Betting 30 May 2 Jun 2008, updated 02-Jun-08
The announcement from Bradford and Bingley of a profit warning, the departure of its chief exec on health grounds and a revised rights issue put pressure on financial blue chips with HBOS down by around 8% and Alliance & Leicester off...read article. Spread Trading 28 May 29 May 2008, updated 29-May-08
A few days ago traders were calling the end of budget airlines, but if this mornings nosedive in oil futures is repeated in coming days there is a possibility of a few red faces. News of Easyjets Andrew Harrison buying £0.5million...read article. Spread Betting 23 27 May 2008, updated 27-May-08
The wholesale weakness in the mining sector, with the likes of Rio Tinto and Anglo American off by more than 3%, has taken its toll on the index. The slides seen in...read article. Spread Trading 21 22 May 2008, updated 22-May-08
It is indicative of the sort of day it has been that the normally sedate mobile telecoms giant Vodafone has managed to make it to the top of the blue chip gainers list for the day, with a rise for the share price above 3%. This was on the back of news...read article. UK Financial Markets May 2008, updated 20-May-08
Today saw the UK market weak from the open with company data doing little for early sentiment. Imperial Tobacco revealed lower than expected first half sales and better than expected Marks and Spencer results were outweighed by a downbeat outlook from the retailer. The mining sector was...read article. Spread Trading May 2008, updated 16-May-08
After a couple of weeks of inconclusive sideways trading, the FTSE 100 rocketed out of the starting gate on Friday morning to blitz through the 6300 level and trade at its highest since 8 January. The news flow was all...read article. Spread Betting on Banks May, updated 14-May-08
While this view can hardly be described as a shock for financial markets it did little to improve sentiment, on a morning where Bradford and Bingley executed a U-turn and announced it would be launching a rights issue. Following Tuesdays additional write downs by Alliance & Leicester, this news weighed...read article. Spread Trading HSBC May, updated 12-May-08
HSBC was todays bank in the spotlight, with first quarter profits coming in higher than the same period last year. The bank did announce credit-crunch related write-downs but with these coming in lower than initially expected, the share price has...read article. Spread Trading US Markets May, updated 08-May-08
Wall Street shuddered a little on the news, along with concerns over crude oil prices and consumer spending, with the Dow Jones opening lower as traders considered the Feds plans to curb inflation. However...read article. Spread Betting on UK Markets May, updated 06-May-08
A trading update from Lloyds TSB said that performance so far in 2008 was as expected but it was making a bigger than forecast write down of £387 million. The biggest gainer on the day so far has been Tullow Oil with news of...read article. Spread Trading B&Q, updated 01-May-08
Going into the final few minutes of trading the FTSE 100 has managed to recover from earlier losses and push back above 6100. The big gainer for the day so far has been Home Retail Group, owner of Argos and B&Q, with the share price up by 9%. The company unveiled full year profits 15% ahead of...read article. Spread Betting on Oil Companies, updated 29-Apr-08
Better than expected first quarter results from oil giants BP and Shell provided a boost to London in early trade, with both ending the day with gains in excess of 5%. The morning also saw HBOS confirm recent speculation...read article. Spread Trading Banks April, updated 25-Apr-08
Banking was once again a the forefront with speculation of the 'will they or wont they' variety surrounding HBOS and a rights issue. Plenty of people thought last weeks announcement by RBS could mean that...read article. RBS Spread Trading April, updated 23-Apr-08
RBS confirmed recent speculation, by announcing that a £12 billion rights issue will be launched. In addition it also revealed another £5.9 billion of write downs due to the credit crunch. Not surprisingly, the share price has fallen on the day and this has weighed on the...read article. FTSE 100 Spread Trading April, updated 21-Apr-08
The FTSE is determinedly trying to make up yesterdays losses and had shimmied over the 6050 mark by the mid session, up 66 points or 1%. Banks once again led the line. The first-quarter results of a $5.1bn (£2.6bn) loss from Citigroup, the worlds largest bank, were not as bad as expected. That gave hope to...read article. Spread Betting on American Shares April, updated 17-Apr-08
Disappointing first quarter results from US investment bank Merrill Lynch in particular, along with Pfizer and Nokia, sharply reversed the earlier gains at lunchtime as the markets suffered yet another body blow. The FTSE 100 slipped just over...read article. Wall Street Spread Trading April, updated 15-Apr-08
US consumer giant Johnson and Johnson revealed better than expected first quarter earnings which all helped to feed Wall Streets initial bullish mood. The move back above 5900 is a positive one for the FTSE 100 but with still a...read article. Dow Jones Spread Betting April, updated 11-Apr-08
The last few weeks have seen the FTSE 100 slightly outperform the US indices in the rally we have seen since mid-March. It had been holding up well in the face of drops in the Dow 30 this week. Many will still consider the...read article. Spread Betting on UK Markets April, updated 09-Apr-08
The FTSE 100 fell some 23 points at this mornings opening, touching a low of 5947, as the City considered the gloomy IMF forecast for UK economic prospects. The FTSE then proceeded to march upwards until mid-morning when UK banks pulled the blue-chip index back...read article. UK Market Spreads April News, updated 07-Apr-08
Going into the last half hour of trading, it is another positive day for the UK market with the FTSE 100 testing the 6000 mark. It has been another day of steady progress for the London market with the UK index rarely looking weak and trading off the highs set this afternoon, just above 6000. Stronger metal prices and...read article. UK Market Spreads April Comments, updated 03-Apr-08
So far this week though, the FTSE 100 has managed to weather any short term weakness in the USA. If it does manage a positive finish on Friday it would leave many investors feeling much more...read article. Spread Betting on UK Futures March, updated 01-Apr-08
Retailer Kingfisher, which only last week halved its dividend, has been one of the main blue chip risers for the day, although there is still some scepticism as to how sustainable this recovery can be in light of the company's relatively muted...read article. Spread Trading UK Markets March, updated 28-Mar-08
Early gains for the FTSE 100 proved unsustainable - the index did manage to push out towards the 5750 area, a level not seen for a good couple of weeks but the market has since spent most of the day in decline. Property stocks have been the...read article. Spread Betting on UK Markets March News, updated 26-Mar-08
Compared to some of the ranges seen recently, today has been something of a non-event for the UK stock market with the FTSE 100 trading in a very tight range of around 40 points so far. The big news on the day has been Bank of England Governor, Mr. Mervyn King's, appearance before the...read article. Spread Betting on UK Markets March, updated 20-Mar-08
In terms of volatility, today has been much quieter than what we have been used to recently. Rentokil has been the big mover to the upside as news of a major management shakeup has been well received by...read article. UK Market Spread Betting March Update, updated 18-Mar-08
Of course the next major event for the markets happens after the UK close. All eyes are on the USA and tonights interest rate decision from the US Federal Reserve. Expectations are for a cut, the only dispute is over the...read article. UK Market Spreads March News, updated 14-Mar-08
All the FTSEs good work this morning, following yesterdays drop of 1.5%, has been unraveled as the market turned flat over midday then plunged around 1% in line with each of the major indexes - with the Dow Jones dropping around 150 points. It was the announcement that the future of...read article. UK Market Spreads March Comments, updated 12-Mar-08
After the initial early gains as the markets played catch up with last nights strong New York trading it is fair to say it has been something of a quieter day for stocks. The UK Budget announcement is doing little to add excitement. The mining sector saw...read article. Comments on the UK Spread Betting Market, updated 10-Mar-08
Compared with the recent volatility we have seen, today has been a relatively quiet one with a brief rally through 5700 running out of steam. Individual company news was thin on the ground, weakness in the mining sector weighed on the index with the likes of BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Antofagasta all off...read article. Spread Trading on UK Markets, updated 06-Mar-08
The non-event of today was of course the decision from the Bank of England with *no change* widely predicted and interest rates staying at 5.25%. The European Central Bank also followed suit leaving its rates unchanged. Central banks on this side of the pond at least remain...read article. Spread Betting on UK Markets, updated 04-Mar-08
Going into the final half hour of trading the FTSE remains weak, trading near session lows. The market has been on the back foot for most of the day with a brief rally evaporating by 9am. The biggest casualty has been insurer Admiral Group. Although...read article. UK Spread Betting Comment, updated 29-Feb-08
The market has been in decline for most of the session with weakness in the US overnight weighing on shares from the open. Weaker mortgage approval data out today added to the uncertainty for the UK housing market. That has, once again, put the banking sector on the back foot which in turn has dragged the FTSE 100...read article. UK Spread Trading Markets, updated 27-Feb-08
Going into the final half hour of trading the FTSE is in the red by around 10 points, after spending most of the day in decline. It has been the banking sector that has contributed to the FTSEs strength over the last couple of days, so a bad day for this sector has dragged the index down. The main culprit has been HBOS with full year results coming in slightly...read article. UK Spread Betting Markets, updated 25-Feb-08
The main reasons behind todays rise came out when the market was closed. First of all, on Friday, there was an impressive rally in the final hour of US trading on hopes of a rescue for bond insurer Ambac. In addition, weekend UK press speculation about possible...read article. UK Market Trading News, updated 22-Feb-08
The banking sector remained in focus with numbers from Lloyds TSB well received by the market and pushing the share price up by around 5% so far. Alliance and Leicester also had a rare good day topping the...read article. UK Market Spread Betting, updated 19-Feb-08
It has been another good day for the UK market with the FTSE up by around 40 points going into the final hour of trading. Early weakness in the shares weighed on the FTSE but a positive conference call helped turn this around with the share price up by around 5% on the day so far. Banking remains...read article.
Q) Average Trading Results?
A) Get free spread betting tips, offers, price updates, important news and more! All Free - Click here!
Risk Warning: Spread betting carries a high level of risk to your capital and you may lose more than your initial investment. It may not be suitable for all investors. Only speculate with money that you can afford to lose. Please ensure you fully understand the risks involved and seek independent financial advice where necessary.
* Tax law is subject to change or may differ if you pay tax in a jurisdiction other than the UK.
