FTSE ticks higher early as commodity stocks gain
The top share index ticked higher early on Friday as a rise in commodity shares on the back of firmer oil and metal prices and positive banks nullified the impact of weaker telecoms and retail stocks.
FTSE up as energy stocks gainBy 9.39 a.m., the commodity-heavy FTSE 100 was up 0.2 points at 5,611.8, after closing at a two-month high in the previous session.
The banking sector was one of the top-weighted gainers on the index, as investors' optimism about a recovery in the global economy got a lift following the release of U.S. growth data on Thursday.
The U.S. government reported the economy grew at a surprisingly robust 3.3 percent in the second quarter, helped by strong export growth and consumer spending.
Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays, HBOS and HSBC rose between 0.7 and 2.8 percent.
"Are the markets going to settle down any time soon and liquidity is going to improve? The answer to both of the questions is probably "no". Is the situation going to get any worse? The answer to that is probably "no" as well," said Neil Parker, market strategist at Royal Bank of Scotland.
"I am reasonably bullish about the market as we are heading into the fourth quarter. I think we are going to see some improvement in the numbers."
But shares in embattled UK mortgage lender Bradford & Bingley fell 1 percent after it posted a 26.7 million pound first-half pretax loss, hit by investment losses and worsening margins.
B&B, Britain's largest buy-to-let lender, said bad debts had continued to rise. It had posted a pretax profit of 180.4 million pounds a year ago, before it was battered by turbulence in the financial and housing markets.
Investors looked for any sign of a cut in UK interest rate cuts this year.
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