Stock prices in London closed mostly higher on Friday, in light of lower-than-expected US inflation the previous day.
The U.S. consumer price index rose 2.7% in November from a year earlier, slowing from annual inflation of 3.0% in September. The market consensus cited by FXStreet expected inflation to rise to 3.1% in November.
“The sharp nature of yesterday's rate decision by the Bank of England is keeping UK shares in check and has slowed the FTSE 100's advance towards the 10,000 mark,” said Danni Hewson of AJ Bell. “Investors have responded to the reality that we could be nearing the end of the current rate cut cycle.”
And he continued: “On the other side of the Atlantic, the CPI reading in the United States, well below expectations, suggests that the Federal Reserve could have more room to cut rates next year.”
The FTSE 100 index closed up 59.65 points, or 0.6%, at 9,897.42. The FTSE 250 closed down 12.88 points, or 0.1%, at 22,312.71, and the AIM All-Share closed up 1.03 points, or 0.1%, at 757.39.
On the FTSE 100, Anglo American rose 0.4% after reporting it was struggling to close the sale of its nickel business and had restarted efforts to offload its remaining coal operation.
The London-based diversified miner previously suffered a setback, after Peabody Energy abruptly ended its bid to acquire Anglo American's steelmaking coal assets in Australia.
Anglo American said on Friday it had restarted a formal process to sell the remaining steelmaking coal business.
The miner also said it is working to finalize the latest regulatory approval with the European Commission necessary to complete the transaction, first announced in February this year.
Carnival, on the FTSE 250, rose 17%.
The Florida-based cruise operator's pre-tax profit rose 45% to a “record” $2.77 billion in the financial year ended Nov. 30, up from $1.92 billion a year ago. Revenue rose 6.4% to $26.62 billion, also a record, from $25.02 billion, and passenger ticket revenue grew 5.8% to $17.42 billion.
Carnival also announced the reinstatement of dividends, declaring a quarterly payment of 15 cents on the dollar.
For full year 2026, the company expects adjusted net income to grow 12%.
In the small cap segment, Seraphim Space rose 8.8%.
The largest holding company of the space technology-focused investor, ICEYE, secured a €1.7 billion deal through a joint venture with arms company Rheinmetall AG. The joint venture will provide radar services to the German armed forces.
On AIM, Revel Collective plummeted 74%.
The bar and pub company said “a number of credible parties” were in talks with the company to potentially acquire the businesses it operates, but warned that any deal was unlikely to deliver any value to shareholders.
Caledonia Mining rose 11%.
The Zimbabwe-focused gold miner has “welcomed” the revised provisions announced by the Zimbabwe government on the gold mining sector.
A proposal to increase the royalty rate from 5% to 10% will now only apply if the bullion price exceeds $5,000 an ounce, and not $2,500. Additionally, a proposed tax change on the treatment of capital expenditures has been withdrawn.
Caledonia stated that as long as the price of gold remains below $5,000 there will be no change in its financial outlook.
In European equities on Friday, the CAC 40 in Paris closed up 0.3%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt closed up 0.3%.
The pound was trading on Friday at the close of the London Stock Exchange at $1.3373, lower than Thursday's $1.3387. The euro was at $1.1715, down from $1.1730. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at 157.46 yen compared to 155.46 yen.
Stocks in New York rose. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6%, the S&P 500 Index rose 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.8%.
The 10-year US Treasury yield was quoted at 4.14%, widening from 4.11%. The 30-year US Treasury yield was quoted at 4.82%, widening from 4.79%.
Brent oil was trading at $60.16 per barrel at the close of the London Stock Exchange on Friday, down from $60.23 on Thursday night.
Gold was trading lower at $4,348.80 an ounce, down from $4,370.61 on Thursday.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Endeavor Mining, up 120.00p to 3,910.00p, Rolls-Royce, up 26.00p to 1,170.00p. Spirax, up 120.00p to 6,850.00p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Barratt Redrow, down 10.16p to 368.64p, Persimmon, down 32.00p to 1,317.00p. 5.50p to 326.60p.
In Monday's economic calendar, the UK releases current account and gross domestic product data.
There are no significant events scheduled on Monday's UK corporate calendar.
– Contributed by Alliance News
