LONDON (Alliance News) - London stocks closed higher on Friday as by the end of the week trade war fears were soothed by positive economic figures from the UK and US, as well as political stability in Spain and Italy.The FTSE 100 index closed up 0.2%, or 17.43 points, at 7,695.63, ending the week down 0.4%. The mid-cap FTSE 250 index closed up 0.6%, or 121.91 points, at 21.023.89. The AIM All-Share index closed up 0.1%, or 1.06 points, at 1,083.68.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.1% at 13,054.23, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.6% at 19,150.17, and the Cboe UK Small Companies was up 0.3% at 12,695.93.Investors brushed aside trade war fears as Washington decided to follow through on threatened tariffs on imported steel and aluminium from the European Union, Canada and Mexico late Thursday.The EU decided to trigger a dispute settlement case at the World Trade Organization late Friday, in response to US steel and aluminium tariff hikes."Clearly the EU has to defend its interests and this is why...the EU will today proceed with the WTO dispute settlement case and impose additional duties on a number of imports from the US," said Federica Mogherini, EU's foreign policy chief in Brussels.Beijing also criticized the US for "unilateralism and protectionism".On the London Stock Exchange,
Johnson Matthey closed as best performer on the FTSE 100 index up 3.4% as the speciality chemicals company's shares set a fresh record high of 3,721.00 pence in morning trade.Johnson Matthey on Thursday raised its dividend by 7% as annual revenue rose, with notable progress being shown in its new battery material development eLNO.
Barratt Developments closed up 2.6% as the second best performer after JPMorgan raised the housebuilder to Overweight from Neutral.Miner
Glencore closed up 2.5% after peer
Rio Tinto said it is planning to sell its 82% stake in the Hail Creek coal mine and its 71% interest in the Valeria coal resource to Glencore for USD1.70 billion. Rio Tinto closed up 1.2%. In the FTSE 250,
FirstGroup closed up 6.9% as the best performer, as the bus and train operator rebounded from heavy losses on Thursday, when it closed down 19%.FirstGroup swung to a GBP326.9 million pretax loss for the year to the end of March, having reported a GBP152.6 million profit a year earlier due to Greyhound impairment charges. This was on revenue of GBP6.4 billion, up 13% from GBP5.7 billion. Chief Executive Tim O'Toole also stood down from his role with immediate effect Thursday.Firmly at the bottom of the midcap index was
Alfa Financial Software, shares closing down 41%, as the financial software company said a major customer delayed its implementation project leading to Alfa revising its 2018 revenue guidance to be between GBP71 and GBP75 million, with revenue for 2017 coming in at GBP87.8 million. Earnings before interest and taxes will be "materially below management's previous expectations" the company said.In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 1.3% while the DAX 30 in Frankfurt was up 0.9%.Investors welcomed the formation of a new government in Italy, the Eurozone's third-largest economy.Italy's anti-establishment Five Star Movement and the far-right League reached a deal to form a populist government, helping avert the prospect of a snap election. At 1500 BST, the politically inexperienced Giuseppe Conte was be sworn in as prime minister of Italy at the head of a populist coalition government, after President Sergio Mattarella accepted a revised list of ministers."Politics has played a big role in today's positive move in European stocks. In Italy there was a political compromise that lead to the formation of a coalition government between the Five Star Movement and the League Party. Traders have reacted well to the news, but as their anti-establish rhetoric hasn't faded, the new government might be a headache for investors down the line. The Spanish market has been pushing higher since it was revealed that Pedro Sanchez will take over from Mariano Rajoy as prime minister. This will avoid a snap general election and it has lifted investor confidence," said David Madden, market analyst at CMC Markets.Italy's blue chip FTSE MiB index closed up 1.5%.Conversely, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has lost a no-confidence vote, with a majority of lawmakers voting to remove him from office on Friday.Rajoy's defeat in parliament sets the stage for Pedro Sanchez, who leads the socialist PSOE party, to become prime minister.Spain's IBEX 35 index was up 1.7% at the London equities close.Sterling was higher against the dollar quoted at USD1.3350 the London equities close, compared to USD1.3291 on Thursday, after positive UK manufacturing PMI data.The UK manufacturing sector expanded at a faster pace in May, survey data from IHS Markit and Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply showed.The manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose unexpectedly to 54.4 in May from a 17-month low of 53.9 in April. The score was expected to drop to 53.5. A reading above 50 indicates expansion.Stocks in New York were higher at the London equities close. The DJIA was up 0.8%, the S&P 500 index up 0.9% and the Nasdaq Composite up1.3%.Employment in the US jumped by much more than anticipated in the month of May, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Friday. The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment surged up by 223,000 jobs in May after climbing by a downwardly revised 159,000 jobs in April. The Institute for Supply Management said its purchasing managers index climbed to 58.7 in May from 57.3 in April, with a reading above 50 indicating growth in the US manufacturing sector. Economists had expected the index to rise to 58.1. The Commerce Department said US construction spending spiked by 1.8% to an annual rate of USD1.310 trillion in April after plunging by 1.7% to a rate of USD1.287 trillion in March. Economists had expected construction spending to climb by 0.8%. The euro was lower quoted at USD1.1672 at European equities close, from USD1.1680 on Thursday, as manufacturing PMI readings from the continent missed economist's expectations.The upturn in the Eurozone manufacturing sector showed further signs of cooling in May, as initially estimated, final data from IHS Markit showed. The factory Purchasing Managers' Index fell to a 15-month low of 55.5 from 56.2 in April. The score matched the flash estimate of 55.5, although a reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.Germany's IHS Markit/BME factory PMI dropped to 56.9 in May from 58.1 in April. The latest reading was the lowest seen for 15 months. The flash score was 56.8.Brent oil was quoted lower at USD76.43 a barrel at the equities close from USD77.66 at the same time the prior day.Gold was quoted lower at USD1,296.86 an ounce at the London equities close against USD1,301.58 on Thursday.In the economic events calendar on Monday there is the UK construction PMI reading for May at 0930 BST, eurozone producer prices at 1000 BST and South Africa business confidence data at 1030 BST. In the UK corporate calendar on Monday there is full year results from digital advertising company RhythmOne, identity verification services provider GB Group and Personal Assets Trust.
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