Ftse 100 Closes At Three: week low; Persimmon surges (updated)

CRH

26/04/2023 10:03

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        * 
      CRH falls on dour European market outlook
    

        * 
      Drax Group rises after share buyback
    

        * 
      StanChart up on upbeat Q1 profits
    

        * 
      Persimmon clocks best day in over two months
    

        * 
      FTSE 100 down 0.5%, FTSE 250 flat
    

  
 (Adds comment; updates prices, details)
    By Shristi  Achar A and Johann M  Cherian
       April 26 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 fell on
Wednesday, closing at a near three-week low as the pound weighed
on pharmaceutical firms, though homebuilder Persimmon advanced
after reporting robust quarterly results.    
    Persimmon Plc  PSN.L  gained 4.9%, logging its best day in
more than two months, after it said it expected to build homes
at the top end of its annual guidance range. However, it also
noted that cost inflation showed limited signs of easing in the
short-term. 
    The larger homebuilders sector  .FTNMX402020  added 3.3%. 
    "Positive earnings are going to keep the momentum going for
the short term," said Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at
Capital.com.
    "With recession looming and interest rates rising, that's
obviously going to weigh on home sales and mortgage lending into
the future." 
    The blue-chip index  .FTSE  ended 0.5% down for the third
straight session, while the mid-cap FTSE 250  .FTMC  shed 0.04%.
    GSK Plc  GSK.L  began 2023 with a quarterly performance that
beat analyst expectations, but the drugmaker's shares fell 3.9%,
tracking declines among European peers  .SXDP .
    Also hurting healthcare stocks, the European Union published
a draft of its proposed overhaul of laws governing the EU's
pharmaceuticals industry, setting up a tussle with drugmakers
which warn they will invest and innovate elsewhere.
    The broader healthcare sector  .FTNMX201030  lost 3.3% and
weighed on the top FTSE 100 index as the pound  GBP=D3  climbed
0.5% hurting shares of export-focussed firms.  GBP/ 
    The FTSE indexes have had a good run earlier this month,
buoyed by strength in commodity-linked stocks and defensives
such as pharmaceuticals. 
    However, this week investors have begun to assess earnings
from domestic firms and those in the U.S., ahead of the Federal
Reserve's rate-setting meeting next month. 
    Among other moves, CRH Plc  CRH.L  fell 3.3% as the building
materials giant said the European market remained challenging
amid expectations of a profit boost from its U.S. operations. 
    Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc  RKT.L  lost 3.4% after naming
company insider Kris Licht as its new CEO. 
    Standard Chartered PLC  STAN.L  reported its first-quarter
pre-tax profit beat expectations, sending its shares up 2.2%. 
    The broader banking sector  .FTNMX301010  rose 1.1%.
    Drax Group Plc's shares  DRX.L  rose 1.7% after the power
generator announced a 150 million pound ($187 million) share
buyback programme. 

 (Reporting by Shristi Achar A and Johann M Cherian in
Bengaluru; editing by Eileen Soreng and Alex Richardson)
 ((Shristi.AcharA@thomsonreuters.com;))
 
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