LONDON (Alliance News) - The FTSE 100 ended higher Friday, getting a late lift once the US markets opened having trading in a tight range for most of the day, while supermarkets fell heavily as the price war in the sector intensified once again.
The FTSE 100 outperformed the other UK indices, ending the day up 0.2% at 6,649.39. However, it recorded its biggest weekly loss since June 2013, having fallen sharply on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. The FTSE 250 closed the day 0.3% lower at 15,383.69 and the AIM All-Share was down 0.3% at 748.95.
European equity markets closed Friday mixed, with the CAC 40 closing up 0.9% but the DAX ended 0.2% lower.
US indices were performing strongly at the close of European trade. The DJIA was trading up 0.3%, the S&P 500 up 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.3%.
Supermarkets suffered heavy losses Friday after J Sainsbury pledged lower prices on its branded products, and said it will now only match its 'brand match' scheme with Asda's prices and not Tesco as well. The grocer said it will be lowering base prices on thousands of lines within its food business from October 2, and will match Asda's prices on brands even when those products are on promotion. The move is seen as a fairly aggressive price cutting move given that Asda, owned by US retail giant Wal-Mart, has very deep pockets and is known to be the cheapest of the big four UK supermarkets.
The FTSE 350 food and retailers index suffered its heaviest weekly fall since 2012, declining 13% as the sector continued to slide in the wake of Tuesday's data from Kantar Worldpanel which showed that Sainsbury, Tesco and William Morrison Supermarkets had lost more market share to discounters in the 12 weeks to September 14.
Sainsbury's was the worst-performing stock on the FTSE 100 Friday, declining 3.1%, while Morrison fell 1.8%, and Tesco fell 0.5%.
EasyJet ended the day atop the blue-chip index, its shares gaining 3.2%. Cantor Fitzgerald said the airline will be the main beneficiary of the decision earlier this week by Air France KLM to drop plans to expand its low-cost airline Transavia.
The brokerage noted that France is a key and growing market for easyJet, and it currently has a 14% market share for all passengers and 24% of the business market. Moreover, easyJet has the number one or two positions at eight out of the ten major French airports, and on a number of key routes from Paris it is the only significant competitor to Air France, said Robin Byde, an analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald.
De La Rue was the worst-performing stock in the FTSE 250, its shares declining 34% after the banknote printer warned that its underlying operating and pretax profit for the current year will be GBP20 million lower than the previous year, and it lowered its expectations for next year as a result of deteriorating trading conditions. In 2013/14 the company posted an underlying pretax profit of GBP77.3 million. De La Rue also said that, in light of the difficult trading environment, it intends to "reappraise" the level of its dividend for the full year. It expects to propose an interim dividend of 8.3 pence, down from 14.1 pence a year before.
Economic activity in the US grew faster than previously estimated in the second quarter of 2014, according to the Commerce Department, with the upwardly revised growth matching economist estimates. The Commerce Department said GDP increased by 4.6% in the second quarter, compared with the previously reported 4.2% growth. The growth was a notable turnaround from the 2.1% contraction seen in the first quarter.
"In a challenging week abroad for the White House, the strongest growth in US GDP since 2008 paints the world’s biggest economy as a beacon of stability amid a very uncertain global picture," says Dennis de Jong managing director at UFX.com.
By Neil Thakrar; neilthakrar@alliancenews.com
Copyright 2014 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
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UK earnings, trading statements calendar - next 7 days
Friday 22 July | |
Beazley PLC | Half Year Results |
FRP Advisory Group PLC | Full Year Results |
Record PLC | Q1 Results |
Monday 25 July | |
ECO Animal Health Group PLC | Full Year Results |
F&C Investment Trust PLC | Half Year Results |
GlobalData PLC | Half Year Results |
JTC PLC | Trading Statement |
Plant Health Care PLC | Trading Statement |
SThree PLC | Half Year Results |
Vodafone Group PLC | Trading Statement |
XLMedia PLC | Trading Statement |
Tuesday 26 July | |
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC | Half Year Results |
Ascential PLC | Half Year Results |
Bytes Technology Group PLC | Trading Statement |
Capital & Counties Properties PLC | Half Year Results |
Cohort PLC | Full Year Results |
Compass Group PLC | Trading Statement |
Drax Group PLC | Half Year Results |
easyJet PLC | Trading Statement |
Ergomed PLC | Trading Statement |
Franchise Brands PLC | Half Year Results |
Games Workshop Group PLC | Full Year Results |
Gore Street Energy Storage Fund PLC | Full Year Results |
Greencore Group PLC | Q3 Results |
John Menzies PLC | Trading Statement |
Medica Group PLC | Trading Statement |
Mitie Group PLC | Trading Statement |
NewRiver REIT PLC | Trading Statement |
Playtech PLC | Trading Statement |
Reach PLC | Half Year Results |
Ricardo PLC | Trading Statement |
Sabre Insurance Group PLC | Half Year Results |
SME Credit Realisation Fund Ltd | Full Year Results |
Trifast PLC | Full Year Results |
Tyman PLC | Half Year Results |
Unilever PLC | Half Year Results |
Vivo Energy PLC | Half Year Results |
Wickes Group PLC | Trading Statement |
Wednesday 27 July | |
Aptitude Software Group PLC | Half Year Results |
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC | Half Year Results |
BlackRock Energy & Resources Income Trust PLC | Half Year Results |
Breedon Group PLC | Half Year Results |
British American Tobacco PLC | Half Year Results |
FirstGroup PLC | Trading Statement |
Fresnillo PLC | Q2 Production Results |
GSK PLC | Half Year Results |
Hargreaves Services PLC | Full Year Results |
Hiscox Ltd | Trading Statement |
Ibstock PLC | Half Year Results |
International Personal Finance PLC | Half Year Results |
Lancashire Holdings Ltd | Half Year Results |
Lloyds Banking Group PLC | Half Year Results |
Marston's PLC | Trading Statement |
Motorpoint Group PLC | Trading Statement |
musicMagpie PLC | Half Year Results |
Nichols PLC | Half Year Results |
Primary Health Properties PLC | Half Year Results |
Quartix Technologies PLC | Half Year Results |
Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC | Half Year Results |
Rio Tinto PLC | Half Year Results |
Smart Metering Systems PLC | Half Year Results |
Smurfit Kappa Group PLC | Half Year Results |
Ted Baker PLC | Trading Statement |
Unite Group PLC | Half Year Results |
Wizz Air Holdings PLC | Q1 Results |
Yourgene Health PLC | Full Year Results |
Thursday 28 July | |
Airtel Africa PLC | Trading Statement |
Anglo American PLC | Half Year Results |
Aveva Group PLC | Trading Statement |
BAE Systems PLC | Half Year Results |
Barclays PLC | Half Year Results |
Bodycote PLC | Half Year Results |
BT Group PLC | Q1 Results |
Centrica PLC | Half Year Results |
CVS Group PLC | Trading Statement |
De La Rue PLC | Trading Statement |
Diageo PLC | Full Year Results |
discoverIE Group PLC | Trading Statement |
Dr Martens PLC | Trading Statement |
Elementis PLC | Half Year Results |
FDM Group PLC | Half Year Results |
Forterra PLC | Half Year Results |
Foxtons Group PLC | Half Year Results |
GB Group PLC | Trading Statement |
Greencoat UK Wind PLC | Half Year Results |
Hammerson PLC | Half Year Results |
Headlam Group PLC | Trading Statement |
Inchcape PLC | Half Year Results |
Indivior PLC | Half Year Results |
Informa PLC | Half Year Results |
ITV PLC | Half Year Results |
Jupiter Fund Management PLC | Half Year Results |
Logistics Development Group PLC | Trading Statement |
Metro Bank PLC | Half Year Results |
Mitchells & Butlers PLC | Trading Statement |
Mortgage Advice Bureau (Holdings) PLC | Trading Statement |
Mothercare PLC | Full Year Results |
MySale Group PLC | Trading Statement |
National Express Group PLC | Half Year Results |
Quixant PLC | Trading Statement |
Rathbones Group PLC | Half Year Results |
Relx PLC | Half Year Results |
Rentokil Initial PLC | Half Year Results |
Restore PLC | Half Year Results |
Robert Walters PLC | Half Year Results |
Schroders PLC | Half Year Results |
Segro PLC | Half Year Results |
Shell PLC | Q2 Results |
Smith & Nephew PLC | Half Year Results |
St James's Place PLC | Half Year Results |
Vesuvius PLC | Half Year Results |
Volex PLC | Half Year Results |
Weir Group PLC | Half Year Results |
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