FTSE 100 closes down as US jobs growth slows in January

Market Report: Anglo American's revival continues as stock posts best week in five months

Stock exchange computer
The dollar is sinking - and gold is on the up Credit: Photo: andy wilson / Mood Board/Rex Features

• FTSE 100 tipped to open lower
• MSCI Asia Pacific Index of shares down 0.5pc this week
• Pound could crash by 20pc if UK votes for Brexit, warns Goldman
Carney downgrades UK growth prospects
AEP Dollar tumbles as Fed rescues China in the nick of time

17:12

Market Report: Anglo American's revival continues as stock posts best week in five months

Anglo Amreican three-day graph

16:31

European markets close lower

Stock markets in Europe were left nursing hefty loses by close this afternoon.

The DAX in Germany lost 1.1pc, while the CAC in Paris slipped 0.6pc and the Spanish IBEX bucked the trend to climb 0.6pc.

In London, the FTSE 100 tumbled 50 points, or 0.85pc, to 5,848.69.

16:01

Ouch! US stocks extend fall

15:04

Shares in LinkedIn plunge on weak forecast

14:51

Barclays told: sell US investment bank and axe dividend

Shares in Barclays have under pressure today after Bernstein and Jefferies slashed its target price.

The FTSE 100 stock is currently off by 0.4pc at 172.9p.

Tim Wallace writes:

Barclays should sell off huge chunks of its business, including its US investment bank, to return it to healthy growth, analysts have said.

The radical strategy was suggested by analysts at Bernstein Research in a note written as a strongly worded open letter to the bank’s new chief executive Jes Staley.

“It probably wouldn’t have taken you too long to figure out that the elephant in the room is the investment bank,” said the open letter.

“It needs major surgery but all that we've had is patches here and there."

The letter said that the bank's plan to cut down the worst-performing parts of the investment bank with the aim of creating a smaller, more profitable operation "is possibly one of the worst strategies ever in the history of banking."

Read more here

14:46

Slowing US jobs growth pressures Fed to take foot off the pedal

Tattered and torn American flag blows in strong wind

14:40

US stocks slip

US stock markets opened marginally lower this afternoon after US employment gains lowed last month, data showed.

The Dow Jones opened down 0.02pc, while the S&P 500 dipped 0.2pc and the Nasdaq lost 0.4pc.

14:19

Are banks stocks investable?

The banking sector came under the spotlight again today, after a note from Citigroup questioned whether or not banking stocks are "investable".

After the sharp sell-off sector-wide earlier in the week, Ronit Ghose, of Citigroup, said its reminded investors of banks' poor record in delivering shareholder value.

"In Europe, the banks underperofrmed the broader equity market in eight of the past ten years.

"However, in most of these year, the top quartile of the sector did better than the broader market."

Shares in banks have recovered from the savage sell-off on Tuesday. Standard Chartered is currently changing hands at 452.9p - up 3.4pc.

13:52

Gold reacts...

13:49

Sterling stumbles after jobs data

13:42

Wall Street set to open in the red following jobs report

US stock markets are set to fall when the opening bell sounds on Wall Street after US jobs data disappointed.

Nonfarm payrolls increased by 151,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department said this afternoon.

Dow Jones industrial average futures index slipped 0.12pc, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq index futures lost 0.2pc.

13:39

FTSE dips on US jobs data

The FTSE 100 turned negative after US jobs growth slowed by more than expected in January.

Nonfarm payrolls increased by 151,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate was at 4.9pc - an eight year low.

Hiring from unseasonably mild weather faded last month.

13:03

CMC Markets goes public with £691m value

Spread-betting firm CMC Markets, set up by Peter Cruddas, has floated at the lower end of its price range

Financial services editor Marion Dakers writes:

CMC Markets has joined the stock market at the lower end of its expected market value, and the shares have dipped as they debuted on a choppy day at the London Stock Exchange.

The spread-betting firm founded by the former Conservative party treasurer Peter Cruddas has been valued at £691m by the share sale, towards of the bottom of the range announced last month of between £678m and £794m.

CMC’s stock fell from 240p to 235p in early conditional trading in London. The company’s long-awaited float is one of a handful of large initial public offerings (IPOs) to make it to market this year in the midst of fractious trading and a 5.75pc fall in the FTSE 100 index.

However, the company has said the ongoing market volatility is boosting its business, as its trading clients try to profit from the fast-moving markets.

Read the full report here

12:47

Just Eat boss hits out at competition 'misconceptions'

Concerns about increased competition have wreaked havoc on Just Eat's share price recently.

12:39

European autos snap losing streak

12:12

Markets at midday

European markets extended their gains at midday as miners staged another rally.

In London, the FTSE 100 is 0.5pc higher, while the CAC in Paris is also up 0.5pc and the German DAX rose 0.07pc.

James Hughes, of GKFX, said all eyes are the US jobs data due out later today.

"The market reaction will be harder to gauge than normal this month due to the recent volatility. Ahead of the announcement we are looking at the major FX pairs treading water, with the greenback on for its worse weekly fall of the year as the dollar index trades at its lowest level since October.

"Equity markets are also looking subdued, however there is still this sense of panic in global markets so any negativity or miss of expectations will cause big sell offs in equity market."

11:05

Top Brass

Shares in electronics distributor Premier Farnell have risen by as much as 8.6pc to 107.3p today after it announced the sale of its industrial products unit Akron Brass.

IDEX Corporation will buy the division for $224.2m. Henry Carver, of Peel Hunt, said the sale had raised £25m more than previously expected.

The company had already announced its intention to sell Akron Brass back in September.

The stock is now poised for its biggest daily gain in five years.

Mr Carver added: "This deal will remove a drag on management’s time, reduce leverage considerably and clear the way for re-focusing on the core Element 14 business.

"The next major catalyst is likely to be the announcement of the new permanent management team."

10:37

Anglo out of the doldrums?

Anglo American continues to climb.

10:03

European stock markets turns postive ahead of US jobs data

European crawled out of negative territory this morning ahead of a key US jobs report due later today.

The FTSE 100 advanced 0.4pc, while the DAX added 0.2pc, the CAC in Paris was 0.7pc better, and the IBEX rose 1.3pc.

Chris Beauchamp, of IG, said: "Yesterday’s choppy moves on the overall FTSE 100, with the index sitting in a 100-point range for most of the session, masked a remarkable move higher in mining shares and other heavily shorted names. Despite the best efforts of investors however, the bounce failed to push on significantly this morning.

"US job numbers will dominate the day, with 190,000 jobs expected to have been added in January. Any number above this, ideally combined with a healthy wage growth number, could rescue the US dollar from the doldrums and potentially reignite hopes of a 2016 rate move by the Fed."

09:00

Miners in the pits

Red Alert: Miners back at the bottom of the FTSE.

08:53

Dollar bulls seek 'NFP lifeline'

Although stock markets enjoyed a slight uplift yesterday, it had nothing to do with an improved sentiment towards the global economy, but rather a sharp depreciation of the dollar, said Lukman Otunuga, of ForexTime.

"Asian equities opened noticeably shaky on Friday with the Nikkei sinking -1.32% as concerns mounted in the Japanese markets over the possibility that the Dollar would weaken further against the Yen.

"Although European and American equities grasped the opportunity to conclude positively on Thursday based on Dollar weakness, an air of caution ahead of the anticipated NFP report today may result in a lower open with prices depressed."

08:48

Another short lived rally....

08:30

Just Eat gobbles up food businesses abroad

Just Eat, a website which acts like a shop window for takeaways, is buying four businesses in Mexico, Brazil, Italy and Spain from Rocket Internet and Foodpanda for €125m (£94.7m).

Bosses say the acquisitions will complement Just Eat's existing operations and give the group exposure to important markets, worth a combined £8bn.

The company, which listed on the London stock market almost two years ago, has been busy expanding its global reach in a market in which scale is key.

Last year, it entered Australia and New Zealand through its £445m acquisition of Menulog Group. Since floating in April 2014, Just Eat's shares have risen by more than 57pc.

In its half-year update in August, the company reported that orders, revenues and profits all surged by more than 50pc.

Chief executive David Buttress said the acquisitions would contribute to group profits in the 2016 financial year and would add £5m to the bottom line by 2017. There is also potential for cost savings.

He said:

"This transaction reflects our ambition to make strategic, value-enhancing acquisitions that consolidate our leadership of the global digital marketplace for takeaway food delivery."

08:19

Centrica ditches windfarms

British Gas owner Centrica is selling its 50pc interest in the Glens of Foudland, Lynn and Inner Dowsing wind farms to a consortium of investors, including the UK Green Investment Bank Offshore Wind Fund, for an enterprise value of £423m.

After debt and other charges, Centrica's net share of the proceeds will be £115m.

Glens of Foudland is an onshore wind farm located in Aberdeenshire and the Lynn and Inner Dowsing offshore wind farms are off the coast of North East Lincolnshire.

The sale is in line with Centrica’s strategy to dispose of its interests in wind power generation, while continuing to purchase wind power. Centrica will continue to purchase power from the wind farms until 2024.

08:08

Obama goes green with oil levy

Barack Obama is preparing to levy a $10 a barrel tax on oil, to fund a $300bn investment programme in mass transit, it has been claimed.

Obama aides told Politico that when the US President releases his final budget request next week, he will propose more than $300bn worth of investments over the next decade in high-speed rail, self-driving cars, and other transportation approaches designed to reduce carbon emissions and congestion. To pay for it all, Obama will levy a $10 “fee” on every barrel of oil.

However, there is no real chance that the Republican-controlled Congress will embrace the proposal and his aides acknowledged it’s mostly an effort to jump-start a conversation about the future of transportation.

08:00

CMC's stock market debut

CMC Markets, the financial trader and spread better, has set the price of its shares for its IPO at 240p, valuing the company at £691m.

City tycoon Peter Cruddas, who founded the company in 1989, will hold 62.5pc of the shares following the listing, while Goldman Sachs will own 4.99pc.

The stockmarket debut comes after more than six months of work with bankers at Goldman and Morgan Stanley.

Despite the recent market rout, with the FTSE 100 index of large stocks falling more than 4pc so far this year, Mr Cruddas said the board was confident about the float.

CMC will raise £17m as part of the IPO to pay for admission costs and a share-based incentive plan for the firm's 550 staff.

Overall, roughly £218m worth of shares have been sold to both retail and institutional investors.

The trading firm's clients were offered the opportunity to take a stake in the business. Clients were given priority over other applicants and will get one bonus share for every 10 shares acquired.

Trading kicks off now.

07:52

BG Group profits slump

BG Group oil rig
BG Group is being taken over by Shell

07:37

How the FTSE ended yesterday

Handout photo of a stack reclaimer with a pile of iron ore at the Rio Tinto Parker Point ship loading terminal in the Pilbara region of West Australia
Miners: digging themselves out of a hole? Or dead cat bounce?

07:28

That sinking feeling

Good morning and welcome to Friday.

Asian stock markets turned red again this morning, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index down 0.3pc - bringing its drop this week to 0.5pc.

The Topix index in Japan fell 1.4pc while the Nikkei 225 slid 1.3pc.

In China, the CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell 0.7pc, to 2,963.79, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.6pc, to 2,763.49 points.

Trading was thin on Friday as many traders have already left for the Lunar New Year holiday. Mainland markets will be closed all of next week.

Meanwhile the dollar is headed for its worst week since 2011 as traders boosted bets the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates on hold this year.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, a gauge of the US currency, fell 0.5pc yesterday for a second daily decline. Gold has gained 3.4pc this week, putting it on course for the largest weekly gain since January 8.