Last checked at 
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Wednesday, with large-cap miners outperforming on news of stimulus measures from China.
The FTSE 100 index opened up 38.21 points, 0.5%, at 7,523.94. The FTSE 250 was up 85.94 points, 0.5%, at 19,078.56, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.37 points, 0.2%, at 740.29.
The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.4% at 751.62, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.6% at 16,517.35, and the Cboe Small Companies was flat at 14,866.41.
The dollar was softer against major currencies in early exchanges in Europe.
Sterling was quoted at USD1.2714 early Wednesday, higher than USD1.2660 at the London equities close on Tuesday. The euro traded at USD1.0876, higher than USD1.0835. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY147.69, down versus JPY148.54.
In the FTSE 100, miners were the top performers, as Chinese officials announced stimulus measures, and said there would be more support for the country's struggling property sector to be revealed on Thursday.
Endeavour Mining jumped 6.8%, Anglo American added 4.1%.
Fresnillo rose 3.3%, after reporting fourth quarter production data.
The gold and silver miner in Mexico said annual silver equivalent production met guidance of 105.1 million ounces, with gold, lead, and zinc also coming within guided ranges. Silver production rose 4.7% year-on-year, following the ramp up at Juanicipio and higher ore grade at San Julian Vein, but was below expectations.
Rio Tinto rose 1.7%.
The miner said it has been informed by authorities that a plane carrying its employees crashed on its way to the Diavik mine, near Forth Smith, Northwest Territories, Canada. The crash resulted in fatalities, Rio Tinto said.
"We are working closely with authorities and will help in any way we can with their efforts to find out exactly what has happened," said Chief Executive Jakob Stausholm.
Separately, Rio Tinto said it has agreed to buy all electricity from the 1.1 gigawatt Upper Calliope solar farm to provide renewable power for its Gladstone operations.
In European equities, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.4%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 1.0%.
Dutch chipmaking machine supplier ASML jumped 6.1% in Amsterdam, after strong annual results.
Back in London's FTSE 250, easyJet rose 5.1%.
The budget airline said it reduced its losses in the final three months of 2023 despite suffering a GBP40 million hit from the Hamas-Israel conflict.
easyJet recorded a loss before tax of GBP126 million between October and December last year, down from GBP133 million during the same period in 2022. Passenger numbers increased by 14% year-on-year.
The airline said it expects to suffer a "direct impact of GBP40 million" in the six months to the end of March due to the war between Israel and Hamas.
CMC Markets UK's Michael Hewson commented: "easyJet holidays has been the standout performer here managing to more than double its profits to GBP30 million from GBP13 million. While this is welcome the improvement here serves to mask a bigger loss in the rest of the business."
abdrn fell 3.2%
The investment company announced a new transformation programme to bring about annualised cost savings of at least GBP150 million by the end of next year. The programme will include removing management layers, increasing spans of control, efficiencies in outsourcing and technology areas, as well as cutting overheads in group functions and support services. While most of the savings will come from non-staff costs, abdrn expects to cut around 500 roles.
At the end of the second half of 2023, assets under management and administration eased to GBP494.9 billion, down from GBP495.7 billion at the end of June. Meanwhile, net outflows widened to GBP12.4 billion in the second half from GBP5.2 billion in the first half.
In the US on Tuesday, Wall Street ended mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.3%, the S&P 500 up 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.4%.
Netflix jumped 8.7% in after-hours trade.
The streaming service reported strong growth in its quarterly revenue, an operating margin ahead of forecast and a record jump in subscriber numbers. Despite recent price hikes, Netflix said global paid streaming memberships rose around 13% to 260.28 million from 230.75 million the year before, with 13.12 million net adds in the quarter - its largest fourth quarter ever.
"The password sharing ban has been a boon for the company. The only thing they regret is not having thought about it before," said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.
In Asia on Wednesday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo closed down 0.8%.
Japan's private sector returned to expansion territory, according to the latest survey data. The au Jibun Bank flash composite purchasing managers' index rose to 51.1 points in January from December's neutral 50.0 reading. The flash services PMI rose to 52.7 from 51.5, while manufacturing's flash PMI edged up to 48.0 from 47.9.
"While only modest, the rate of growth was the strongest seen since September. Service providers continued to lead the way with a steeper increase in business activity, with the expansion strengthening to a four-month high. Manufacturers meanwhile signalled an eighth consecutive deterioration in operating conditions that nonetheless eased from that seen in December," said S&P Global economist Usamah Bhatti.
In China, the Shanghai Composite closed up 1.8%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong jumped 3.5%.
China said it would next month cut the amount banks must hold in reserve in order to boost lending, state media reported. The decision comes as the world's second-largest economy faces multiple headwinds, including a prolonged crisis in the property sector, sluggish domestic consumption and weakening foreign demand.
The move will provide "CNY1 trillion, or USD140 billion, of liquidity to the market", it added.
The central bank's governor also said Wednesday that more policies to offer support for the country's struggling property sector will be announced tomorrow.
The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 0.1%.
Gold was quoted at USD2,029.09 an ounce early Wednesday, up slightly from USD2,023.60 on Tuesday. Brent oil was trading at USD79.87 a barrel, a touch lower than USD79.92.
Still to come in Wednesday's economic calendar, there will be flash PMIs from the eurozone, the UK and the US.
By Elizabeth Winter, Alliance News deputy news editor
Comments and questions to newsroom@alliancenews.com
Copyright 2024 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
