FTSE 100 manages marginal gain on defensive boost; Spirent soars
Reuters
Published Mar 05, 2024 08:28
Updated Mar 05, 2024 18:06
By Sruthi Shankar and Johann M Cherian
(Reuters) -Britain's blue-chip stock index ended a touch higher on Tuesday, helped by gains in defensive sectors, such as healthcare and utilities, while Spirent Communications (LON:SPT) notched its best day in over two decades following a buyout offer.
The FTSE 100 closed up 0.1%, paring losses that saw the index near three-week lows earlier in the session.
Sectors expected to fare better during times of economic slowdown, such as drugmakers and utilities gained 0.6% and 2.5%, respectively.
Caution prevailed ahead of finance minister Jeremy Hunt's budget statement on Wednesday where he is expected to cut the rate of social security contributions by two percentage points, the Times reported.
Ashtead (LON:AHT) dropped 9.4%, after the equipment rental firm forecast full-year group rental revenue at the lower end of the expected 11%-13% growth range.
"An ordinary three-month period has prompted the company to guide for full year revenue growth at the low end of the range," said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
The mid-cap FTSE 250 index edged up 0.1%, with Spirent Communications soaring 63.3% after U.S.-based communications equipment firm Viavi Solutions Inc agreed to buy the British firm in a deal valued at about 1 billion pounds ($1.28 billion).
The mid-cap index is down 2.1% so far this year, underperforming FTSE 100 as uncertainty on the timeline for interest rate cuts by the Bank of England dampened risk sentiment.
Inchcape fell 8.2% after the automotive distributor tempered its growth outlook for the short term, saying demand has weakened in certain markets.
Global office rental firm IWG (LON:IWG) dropped 2.6% after it struck a cautious tone on outlook even as it reported a 34% jump in annual core profit.
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Written By: Reuters
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