London midday: Stocks jump despite weak services data, M&S and Meggitt surge

5th Nov 2014 11:52

Strong gains from Marks & Spencer, Meggitt and Associated British Foods drove the UK stock market higher on Wednesday, as investors shrugged off some disappointing global economic data.Services purchasing managers' indices (PMIs) in China, the UK and Eurozone all weakened, showing that activity growth had eased slightly in October.Nevertheless, the FTSE 100 was up 0.9% at 6,513 by midday.With the exception Japan's Nikkei index, Asian markets weaker overnight after the HSBC China services PMI fell from 53.5 to 52.9 in October, showing that growth slowing for the second month in a row.Nevertheless, stocks in Tokyo advanced after Bank of Japan governor Haruhiko Kuroda struck a dovish tone in the aftermath of last week's unexpected stimulus boost announcement. He said the central bank is ready to do more to hit inflation targets with "no limits to our policy tools".The UK services PMI declined from 58.7 in September to a 17-month low of 56.2 in October, surprising analysts who had expected only a small fall to 58.5.Meanwhile, the final estimate of the Eurozone services PMI was revised lower to 52.3, after the flash estimate had indicated an unchanged reading from 52.4 the previous month.Marks & Spencer, Meggitt, AB FoodsHigh street bellwether M&S surged 10% after beating analysts' forecasts with its half-year report. Although the market was expecting a fall in profits in the face of the cut-throat retail market, better general retail margins and cost-cutting helped underlying profit before tax rise 2.3% to £267.6m, while the company unexpectedly lifted its dividend.Meggitt was also in demand, rising 7% as investors welcomed a share buyback programme and ignored warnings of a slowdown in growth in the fourth quarter. The aerospace, defence and energy engineer said that organic revenues grew 5% in the third quarter, compared with a 3% decline in the first half.Retail and food ingredients firm Associated British Foods was heading higher, up 5% after Citigroup upgraded the stock to 'buy' on the back of ongoing strength at Primark.Exploration firm Tullow Oil rebounded strongly after a steep drop on Tuesday as stocks in the sector tanked on the back of a slumping crude price. US crude oil is continuing to trade at three-year lows.There were some heavy fallers on the FTSE 250 on Wednesday, led by Stock Spirits which dropped nearly 25% after warning that full-year profits could be €5m-10m below expectations following a "very tough trading period" in the third quarter for the Central European spirits producer.Centamin disappointed as it lowered annual production forecasts for its flagship Sukari gold mine in Egypt after plant productivity suffered a slowdown in October. The stock was down 8%.Insurance firm Esure was also 7% lower after saying that it now expects its full-year combined operating ratio to rise. The company said that it has seen an increase in small bodily injury claims frequency, while premiums for motor insurance continue to fall. Market MoverstechMARK 2,786.91 +1.22%FTSE 100 6,513.49 +0.92%FTSE 250 15,488.12 +0.61%FTSE 100 - RisersMarks & Spencer Group (MKS) 444.20p +9.76%Meggitt (MGGT) 469.70p +6.75%Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,930.00p +5.28%Tullow Oil (TLW) 473.60p +3.43%Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 157.70p +2.87%Shire Plc (SHP) 4,190.00p +2.87%easyJet (EZJ) 1,586.00p +2.72%CRH (CRH) 1,404.00p +2.56%Standard Life (SL.) 395.00p +2.49%Travis Perkins (TPK) 1,648.00p +2.11%FTSE 100 - FallersAdmiral Group (ADM) 1,295.00p -3.07%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 3,697.00p -2.84%Fresnillo (FRES) 681.00p -2.37%Kingfisher (KGF) 288.10p -1.77%Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,035.00p -1.33%Anglo American (AAL) 1,311.50p -1.06%Capita (CPI) 1,073.00p -0.65%BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,602.00p -0.53%Antofagasta (ANTO) 692.50p -0.50%Weir Group (WEIR) 2,159.00p -0.28%FTSE 250 - RisersOcado Group (OCDO) 290.10p +10.51%Howden Joinery Group (HWDN) 364.10p +6.18%FirstGroup (FGP) 119.60p +3.91%Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,937.00p +3.53%SIG (SHI) 150.80p +3.50%Cairn Energy (CNE) 147.80p +3.21%Home Retail Group (HOME) 189.30p +2.99%Dunelm Group (DNLM) 860.00p +2.81%Afren (AFR) 71.55p +2.65%Rathbone Brothers (RAT) 1,937.00p +2.65%FTSE 250 - FallersStock Spirits Group (STCK) 226.80p -24.50%Centamin (DI) (CEY) 47.94p -8.25%esure Group (ESUR) 223.60p -6.64%Aveva Group (AVV) 1,339.00p -6.36%NMC Health (NMC) 490.10p -4.74%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 203.20p -3.42%Wetherspoon (J.D.) (JDW) 804.00p -3.37%Hochschild Mining (HOC) 93.90p -3.20%Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 97.00p -2.07%EnQuest (ENQ) 65.90p -1.86%