Summary:
Investing.com -- British stocks opened higher on Thursday after the U.S. President Donald Trump made another move in the ongoing tariff dispute the previous day, announcing a 90-day tariff pause, that lifted global markets.
As of 0815 GMT, the blue-chip index FTSE 100 index surged 5.4% and the midcap index FTSE Mid-Cap 250 1.95%.
On Wednesday, President Trump announced a temporary 90-day reduction in new tariff rates, bringing them down to 10%, for most U.S. trade allies.
China, however, was excluded from this relief. In response to Beijing’s earlier move to hike tariffs on American imports to 84%, the U.S. escalated its own tariffs on Chinese goods to 125%.
Meanwhile, the European Union voted to approve the bloc’s first round of retaliatory measures following the U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs.
Tesco warns profit drop
In earnings news, Tesco PLC (LON:TSCO) shares fell 5.7% on Thursday after it cautioned that profits may decline in the upcoming financial year, as the retailer contends with rising taxes, persistent inflation, and growing competition in the UK grocery sector.
While Tesco reported solid results for the year ending February 22, 2025, it anticipates adjusted operating profit for 2025/26 to fall between £2.7 billion and £3 billion, lower than this year’s £3.13 billion.
Shares in electronic connector maker TT Electronics plummeted 14.4% after it delivered FY24 results in line with guidance, but trimmed its FY25 outlook by a high-teens percentage at the midpoint.
CEO Peter France has stepped down effective immediately, with newly appointed CFO Larkin taking over as interim CEO.
UK housing market continued to weaken in March
The UK housing market saw further softening in March, according to the latest survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), which highlighted a deeper decline in demand and a muted outlook for both sales and prices.
New buyer enquiries dropped sharply, with a net balance of -32%, down from -16% in February and -1% in January, reaching the lowest level since September 2023.
In other company news, LondonMetric (LON:LMPL) Property announced the acquisition of a long-let M&S (LON:MKS) logistics warehouse for £74 million, reflecting a NIY of 5.65%.
This content was originally published on Investing.com
