Weekly review
By Josh White
Date: Friday 06 Jun 2025
(Sharecast News) - The FTSE 100 ended the week up 65.53 points, or 0.75%, closing at 8,837.91 on Friday.
Equity view
Healthcare property investment and management firm Assura has confirmed that due diligence in relation to a takeover proposal from Primary Health Properties is still ongoing, with both parties "working closely" together. Due diligence in relation to PHP's 51.7p-a-share offer has been taking place over the past two weeks, and reciprocal due diligence "remains ongoing".
HSBC has confirmed that its departing chair Mark Tucker is set to leave the bank in three months without the board having yet announced a successor. Tucker, who announced last month his intention to retire before the end of the year, has now been recruited as the non-executive chair of AIA and will join the insurance giant on 1 October.
Online ticketing platform Trainline said it has been selected by the Rail Delivery Group as a technology supplier to support one of four digital pay-as-you-go trials. The trials will run across the Northern Rail and East Midlands Railway networks, starting between September and November, with each running for nine months from their respective start date.
Drugmaker AstraZeneca said on Friday that it had received approval from the European Commission for fixed-duration regimens of its chronic lymphocytic leukaemia candidate Calquence in a first-line setting. AstraZeneca noted that the approval of Calquence, in combination with venetoclax, follows the positive opinion of the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use and was based on positive results from its pivotal AMPLIFY Phase III trial.
Fintech giant Wise has announced its intention to shift its primary listing from the UK to US, saying the move would help accelerate growth and bring "substantial" strategic benefits to the business and its shareholders. The news came as the cross-border payments firm delivered a 17% increase in underlying pre-tax profits, with revenues rising 15%, and said that medium-term profit margin guidance would be at the top end of expectations.
Office owner and operator Workspace Group met expectations with its full-year results, with a small increase in income as higher rents made up for falling occupancy levels. Underlying rental income rose 1.7% over the 12 months to 31 March at £135.5m, though net rental come fell 3.2% to £122.1m as a result of £100m-worth of asset disposals during the period.
Student accommodation provider Unite Group exchanged contracts for the disposal of a portfolio of nine properties on Thursday to an affiliate of Lone Star Funds. Unite said on Thursday that it will net £140.0m from the £212.0m sale of the assets in Aberdeen, Leicester, Leeds, Nottingham and Sheffield, with the disposals priced at a roughly 1% discount to their December 2024 book value and reflecting a net operating income yield of 6.4% based on 2025/26 income.
Carbonated mixers business Fevertree said on Thursday that it was currently trading in line with expectations, with "good progress" being made in the US following the announcement of its strategic partnership with Molson Coors. Fevertree said it has continued to see "strong momentum" in the US market, with underlying brand performance "well ahead of the competition". It also noted that the transition of distribution to Molson Coors' network of distributors was underway and said that both businesses remained "highly aligned and excited" about the "significant" growth opportunity ahead.
Electronics manufacturer Discoverie said on Wednesday that it had delivered a "strong through-cycle performance" in the year ended 31 March, with both earnings and cash flow hitting record levels. Discoverie said adjusted operating profits were up 6% at £60.5m and adjusted pre-tax profits improved 4% to £50.1m as a 1.2 basis point improvement to 14.3% in adjusted operating margins helped to offset a 3% decline in revenue to £422.9m.
Travel retailer WH Smith said on Wednesday that it was "well positioned" for the peak summer trading period after total travel revenue rose 5% year-on-year in the 13 weeks ended 31 May. WH Smith said UK travel revenues grew 5%, while North American revenues improved by 3% year-on-year and Rest of the World revenues shot up 9%. Across all of its channels, like-for-like revenues in Air were up 7%, Hospitals were 3% higher, and Rail improved 6% during the period.
Budget airline Ryanair posted a 4% jump in May traffic on Wednesday. Passenger numbers rose to 19.6 million from 18.9m in May 2024, while the load factor - which gauges how full the planes are - was steady at 95%. On a rolling 12-month basis, traffic jumped 8% in May to 202m. The load factor ticked up to 94% from 93%. Ryanair said it operated more than 108,000 flights last month.
Real estate group Hammerson has announced that its chief executive of five years, Rita-Rose Gagné, has decided to step down from her role in 2026. Gagné, who was brought on in 2020 to spearhead a strategic transformation of the business, will stay with the business for the next 12 months. In a statement on Wednesday, the CEO said it was "the right time for me to pass on the baton" with the business in "a great shape".
Cigarette and nicotine products giant British American Tobacco said on Tuesday that FY revenues were set to come in "slightly ahead" of previous guidance, thanks in part to a return to both top and bottom line growth in the US. British American Tobacco said FY revenues would be 1% to 2% higher year-on-year, while adjusted operating profits were expected to be 1.5% to 2.5% firmer.
Residential property business Grainger said on Tuesday that it has seen an "excellent lease-up performance" of 231 build-to-rent homes at Millwrights Place in Bristol, with the building achieving stabilisation in under a year. Grainger said this "significant milestone" for its second scheme in Bristol underscored the "strong demand" for its "high-quality rental homes" and the efficiency of its "market-leading operating platform".
Pennon Group reported a full-year statutory pre-tax loss of £72.7m for the 12 months ended 31 March on Tuesday, widening from a £9.1m loss the prior year, as finance costs rose and the company absorbed charges related to operational and structural interventions. Underlying revenue rose 15% year-on-year to £1.05bn, reflecting a full contribution from Sutton and East Surrey Group, acquired in 2023.
Gateley said in an update on Tuesday that it expects to report full-year revenue of at least £179.0m for the 12 months ended 30 April, up around 4% on the prior year, with three-quarters of that growth delivered organically. The AIM-traded professional services group said underlying profit before tax would be broadly in line with market expectations.
Telecoms firms Vodafone UK and Three said their newly-merged company planned to spend £1.3bn on capital expenditure in its first year. The combined business, named VodafoneThree, is 51% owned by Vodafone and 49% by CKHGT. Vodafone will fully consolidate VodafoneThree in its financial results, the two companies said on Monday in a statement.
Anglo American has officially completed the demerger of its Valterra Platinum business following the approval of shareholders, allowing the company to focus on its copper, iron ore and crop nutrients operations. Valterra, which is valued at $11bn and already listed in Johannesburg, is scheduled to start trading in a secondary listing in London from Monday, with Anglo retaining a 19.9% interest in the platinum producer.
Instant-service equipment business Me Group told investors on Monday that it had delivered record profitability in the six months ended 30 April and said it was on track to deliver FY25 profits in line with expectations for another record year. Me Group said total pre-tax profits were up approximately 14%, while group revenues were roughly 2% firmer, driven by a "strong" performance in its Revolution laundry division. Excluding the H124 contribution from SEMPA SAS, which was sold in May 2024, interim revenues grew approximately 3.5% year-on-year.
Warhammer maker Games Workshop on Monday said it had appointed Neil Tomlinson as group operations director with immediate effect. Tomlinson joined Games Workshop in 2018 as head of merchandise planning and has since held various management roles across the group, including most recently as operational manufacturing and supply chain director.
Economic news
The Financial Conduct Authority said on Friday that it was proposing to lift the ban on offering crypto exchange traded notes - cETNs - to retail investors. The move would mean that cETNs could be sold to individual consumers, rather than just professional investors if they're traded on an FCA-approved investment exchange.
House prices eased slightly in May, industry data showed on Friday, following a surge in activity during spring. According to Halifax, house prices fell by 0.4% last month following a 0.3% rise in April. The average property price is now £296,648. However, Halifax said the market remained stable, with house prices up 2.5% over the year.
The downturn in the UK's construction sector showed signs of easing in May, according to a closely-watched survey published on Thursday. The latest S&P Global UK construction purchasing managers index was 47.9 in May, still in negative territory but up from April's 46.6 and the slowest pace of contraction since January. It was also ahead of consensus, for 47.2.
The UK's dominant service sector returned to growth last month, a closely-watched survey showed on Wednesday, beating expectations. The S&P Global UK services PMI business activity index came in at 50.9 in May, ahead of consensus and the flash reading of 50.2. It was also a notable improvement on April's 27-month low of 49.0. A reading below the neutral 50.0 benchmark suggests contraction but one above it indicates growth.
Donald Trump has exempted the UK from a new 50% tariff on steel and aluminium imports, after the rate was doubled overnight on Wednesday. The US president first imposed a 25% levy on all steel and aluminium imports in March, one of the first salvos in his aggressive global trade war. But in a proclamation released on Tuesday, Trump confirmed the rate would rise to 50% from midnight on Wednesday.
The governor of the Bank of England has told politicians that further interest rate cuts this year will depend on both a slowdown in wage growth and how global trade policy pans out. The BoE cut the cost of borrowing by 25 basis points rates last month to 4.25%. Andrew Bailey was one of five members of the Monetary Policy Committee to vote in favour of the reduction.
The UK's manufacturing sector continued to struggle in May, a closely-watched survey showed on Monday, weighed down by faltering client confidence, higher costs and ongoing trade uncertainties. The S&P Global UK manufacturing PMI rose to a three-month high of 46.4 last month, from 45.4 in April and above the flash estimate of 45.1.
Mortgage approvals fell sharply in April, official data showed on Monday, after changes to stamp duty thresholds came into effect. According to the Bank of England's latest money and credit report, net mortgage approvals for house purchases - an indicator of future borrowing - fell for the third consecutive month, by 3,100 to 60,500 in April. Analysts had been expecting a more modest decline to 63,000.
UK house prices edged higher in May despite wider economic uncertainties, according to data released on Monday by Nationwide. Prices rose 3.5% on the year, up from 3.4% growth in April. On the month, house prices were up 0.5% in May following a 0.6% decline the month before. The average price of a home stood at £273,427, versus £270,752 in April.
International events
Shares in Tesla rebounded slightly on Friday morning on reports that former best pals Elon Musk and Donald Trump were set to have a phone call following their social media spat which tanked the stock the previous session. The market value of the EV company lost around $150bn (-14%) on Thursday after Trump took offence to Musk's public condemnation of his "big, beautiful bill" - the president's controversial tax and spending bill, which includes multi-trillion-dollar tax breaks and will likely increase the budget deficit dramatically.
Hiring in the US picked up slightly more than expected in May, according to the Department of Labor, with non-farm payrolls rising by 139,000. Last month's increase, the smallest in three months, follows a downwardly revised gain of 147,000 during April. Economists had forecast an increase of 130,000.
The eurozone economy expanded at a much stronger rate than initially expected in the first quarter, registering the steepest rate of growth in two and a half years. Gross domestic product of the single-currency region was estimated to have grown by 0.6% over the first three months of 2025. That's double the rate of growth originally estimated last month (+0.3%) and ahead of the 0.4% expected by economists.
Industrial production and exports in Germany both fell sharply in April, official data showed on Friday, missing forecasts. According to Destatis, the Federal Statistical Office, industrial production declined 1.4%, or by 1.8% year-on-year. Markets had been expecting a 1% fall. It was also a notable change to March, when industrial production sparked by a revised 2.3%.
The European Central Bank cut the cost of borrowing on Thursday, as widely predicted, after inflation dipped below target. The Eurozone's central bank trimmed its key deposit facility rate by 25 basis points to 2%, the eighth reduction in the current cutting cycle. It said the decision was based on an "updated assessment of the inflation outlook, the dynamics of underlying inflation and the strength of monetary policy transmission".
Price pressures from the US jobs market intensified by more than expected during the first three months of 2025, as the economy shrank. Compounding matters, labour productivity growth also fell by more than expected during the first quarter. According to the Department of Labor, in seasonally adjusted terms non-farm unit labour costs jumped at a quarterly annualised pace of 6.6%.
Amercians lined up for unemployment benefits at an accelerated pace in the week ended 31 May, according to the Department of Labor. Initial jobless claims rose by 8,000 to 247,000, up from the previous week's revised figure of 239,000, versus expectations of a drop to 235,000 to mark the highest reading since October 2024.
Commodity broker Trafigura posted net profits of $1.5bn on Thursday, but warned market turbulence was poised to continue into the second half. The Switzerland-based trading house, which has its head office in Singapore, said group revenues in the six months to 31 March were $119.2bn, down 4% on lower average commodity prices. Net profits rose 3%.
Consumer goods giant Procter and Gamble has announced plans to cut 7,000 jobs as part of a new two-year non-core restructuring programme amid a sharp slowdown in organic sales growth. The plans, which involve brand exits, selected brand divestitures and potential market exits, will see the company lose around 15% of its workforce from non-manufacturing roles.
Producer prices across the eurozone slumped in April by their most in two years as energy price deflation accelerated significantly. According to Eurostat data on Thursday, wholesale prices across the single-currency region declined by 2.2% in April, following a revised 1.7% decrease in March. This was a lot quicker than the 1.8% fall expected by economists and the steepest monthly drop since April 2023.
Eurozone construction activity remained in contraction territory in May, according to Hamburg Commercial Bank's purchasing managers' index. HCOB's Eurozone construction PMI fell to 45.6 in May, down from 46 in April, pointing to a deeper contraction in construction activity across the euro area. Total activity and new order inflows both declined at sharp rates, leading to further reductions in employment and purchasing activity.
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