Weekly review
By Josh White
Date: Friday 11 Jul 2025
(Sharecast News) - The FTSE 100 ended the week up 118.21 points, or 1.34%, closing at 8941.12 on Friday.
Equity view
Technology investor Polar Capital Technology said on Friday that net asset value had grown 3.1% to 325.20p in the year ended 30 April, slowing considerably from the prior year's 40.8% surge and tracking behind the benchmark average of 5.1%. Total net assets were broadly flat year-on-year at £3.8bn, up just 0.01% on FY24, while price per ordinary share fell 1.2% to 288.50p, a marked difference to the prior year's 50.5% increase.
Bookmaker Flutter has agreed to purchase Boyd Gaming's remaining 5% stake in FanDuel for roughly $1.76bn, giving it complete ownership of the US sports betting firm. The deal, which values FanDuel at approximately $31.0bn, comes as Flutter looks to strengthen its position in the fast-growing US online gambling market.
BP on Friday said second-quarter earnings would be hit by weaker oil and gas prices, despite a rise in reported upstream production compared to the previous three months. Gas & low carbon energy segment, realisations, compared to the prior quarter, are expected to have an impact in the range of $100 - 300m, the company said in a quarterly trading update.
Blackstone Europe took a step closer to securing Warehouse Reit on Friday, after the London-listed property group backed an improved £489m takeover bid. Warehouse, a specialist in industrial real estate, had originally recommended a £485.2m offer from fellow landlord Tritax Big Box, having rejected Blackstone's first approach in June.
Troubled advertising agency WPP has appointed Microsoft executive Cindy Rose as chief executive to succeed Mark Read who will step down on September 1.Rose, who has held senior leadership positions for nine years at the software giant, is currently chief operating officer of global enterprise, helping companies use digital technology and AI to drive business, an area where WPP has been struggling to compete.
Water and sewage firm Severn Trent reiterated its full-year outlook on Thursday, boosted by ongoing work to find and fix leaks. In a trading update, the utility - which supplies around 4.6m homes and businesses in the Midlands and Wales - said it had seen a "strong start" to the current five-year regulatory period, which runs until 31 March 2030.
Recruiter PageGroup reported a steeper rate of profit decline in the second quarter, with particular weakness in the EMEA and UK divisions. For the full year, the board said it still expects to hit market forecasts for operating profit, though subdued levels of client and candidate confidence are continuing to impact decision making.
Housebuilder Vistry said on Thursday that H1 profits were in line with expectations at roughly £125.0m, underpinning the group's confidence in its FY outlook. Vistry said H1 group revenues were expected to be approximately £200.0m lower at £1.8bn as it delivered roughly 6,800 completions in H1, down from 7,792 a year earlier, with roughly 73% of which being partner funded, while the remaining 27% were open market. Sales rates averaged 1.022, down from 1.21 in H124, with average selling prices "remaining firm".
Real estate investment trust LondonMetric said on Wednesday that it has sold a further six assets for £42.6m since its FY results announcement in May. So far this financial year, LondonMetric has sold 14 assets for £106.0m, in line with 31 March 2025 book values.
Residential landlord Grainger has achieved a rapid 60% lease-up of its Kimmeridge build-to-rent scheme in Oxford in just three months since launch. The Kimmeridge, one of Grainger's flagship developments and the only BTR scheme in Oxford, comprises 150 homes and over 2,000 sq ft of shared amenity space for residents, including a gym, lounge, co-working spaces, courtyard and terrace.
Real estate investment and development company British Land said on Wednesday that it had seen "positive leasing progress" at its Broadgate and Norton Folgate assets, as occupiers continued to focus on best-in-class space in core locations. At Broadgate, British Land said leasing of new Storey space has been "strong", with 201 Bishopsgate address now fully let or under offer to 11 businesses, including DocuSign and the National Institute for Health and Care Research, at an 18% premium to traditional net effective rents, including accounting for fit out depreciation. The recently completed Storey space at Broadgate Tower, spanning 12,500 square feet, was also already 67% let or under offer within six weeks of launching.
Zigup posted a slide in full-year profits on Wednesday, but insisted there were "good opportunities" ahead. Revenues at the FTSE 250 group, which provides truck rental and mobility services such as fleet management, were 2.3% higher on an underlying basis in the year to 30 April, at £1.56bn.
Specialist polymer maker Victrex said second half underlying profits could be at a "broadly similar" level to the first as it continued to see a weaker-than-expected performance at its medical division, production issues at its new China plant and currency headwinds. The London-listed company has targeted underlying pre-tax profit to be "slightly" improved on the first six months of the year but warned earnings would be flat if the current sales mix and weak average selling prices continued."
Student accommodation provider Unite reiterated its FY25 guidance for adjusted EPRA earnings per share of 47.5p to 48.25p on Tuesday as it said it had seen "continuing momentum", with 85% of beds sold for the 2025/26 academic year. Unite said the outlook for student demand was "strong", with 2% growth in applications from UK 18-year-olds and student visa applications up 29% over the first five months of the year.
SIG reported a modest rise in first-half operating profit on Tuesday, and confirmed its full-year outlook despite subdued demand across its European markets. The London-listed building materials supplier also named Pim Vervaat as its next chief executive, with a planned transition to chair in 2027.
Begbies Traynor posted a 10th consecutive year of growth on Tuesday, with full-year revenue and profits ahead of market expectations and a new share buyback programme aimed at offsetting future share option dilution. Revenue for the year ended 30 April rose 12% to £153.7m, with 10% of that coming from organic growth. Adjusted EBITDA increased 11% to £31.7m, while adjusted pre-tax profit rose to £23.5m from £22m.
Hospitality group SSP said public bidding has started for the IPO of its joint-owned Indian operations in a proposed stock market listing in Mumbai that could be worth up to £1.23bn. SSP, which operates convenience food stores and restaurants in travel gateways across 40 countries, plans to list the Travel Food Services joint venture with K Hospitality Corp on July 14.
Ukraine-focused iron ore pellet maker Ferrexpo reported a slump in second-quarter production as a government suspension of VAT refunds hit liquidity, forcing it to scale back operations. Production fell 40% quarter on quarter to 1.267m tonnes. The lack of liquidity meant Ferrexpo had to downscale operations from two to one pelletising line and also to reduce the production of high-grade concentrate.
Care facilities investor Primary Health Properties said on Monday that it was positioned for secure income and valuation growth in FY25, supporting its progressive dividend policy. Primary Health Properties said it had seen improving rental growth and stabilisation in yields in the six months ended 30 June, underpinning valuation growth and further evidencing "an inflexion point" in the cycle. The FTSE 250-listed group said net rental income was up 3.1% at £78.6m in the half, while adjusted earnings were 2.2% stronger at £47.3m and IFRS profits surged from £3.6m in H124 to £59.4m in H125. Dividends rose 2.9% to 3.55p per share.
Online trading services provider Plus500 said on Monday that it has seen "accelerating positive momentum" and "material strategic progress" across the group in the six months ended 31 June. Plus500 said H1 revenues were up 4% at $415.1m, while underlying earnings rose 1% to $185.1m, and EBITDA margins contracted from 46% to 45%.
Economic news
British GDP eased in May, government data showed on Friday, weighed down by faltering performances in manufacturing and construction. According to the Office for National Statistics, monthly GDP fell by 0.1%. Most analysts had expected a 0.1% uplift, though it remained a marginal improvement on April's 0.3% decline. Monthly services grew by 0.1%, following a 0.3% fall in the preceding month.
Retail footfall eased across UK high streets in June, industry data showed on Friday, as extreme heat and heavy downpours put off shoppers. According to the latest BRC-Sensormatic footfall monitor, total UK footfall decreased by 1.8% last month, compounding May's 1.7% decline. The biggest slide was seen on the high street, where footfall decreased by 3.0%.
The UK government has canned plans for so-called 'zonal pricing' for electricity usage, preferring to stick with a single national price so that the system is fairer for consumers. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero confirmed on Thursday that it has chosen to reform the existing national pricing system rather than split the country into different zones. Zonal pricing would have charged people different amounts for their electricity, depending on their proximity to where energy is generated.
The UK housing market picked up in June, a closely-watched survey showed on Thursday, as buyer demand strengthened and recent volatility eased. According to the latest residential market survey from Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, buyer demand moved out of negative territory for the first time since December last month. The net balance for new buyer enquiries was 3, up significantly on May's -22.
The Bank of England warned on Wednesday that Donald Trump's tariff regime would weigh on global growth, but said UK consumers and businesses were well-placed to weather the storm. Publishing its latest Financial Stability Report, the central bank's Financial Policy Committee said that since its last report in November, the global economy had been hit by sweeping US levies as well as the duties imposed by other countries in response.
The Office for Budget Responsibility has said that the finances of the government are in a "relatively vulnerable position". In its latest Fiscal Risks and Sustainability report, published on Tuesday, the non-departmental public body said that public finances have emerged from a series of global economic shocks with the sixth-highest debt, fifth-highest deficit, and third-highest borrowing costs among 36 advanced economies.
UK house prices were steady last month as market activity picked up pace, according to figures released on Monday by Halifax. This followed a 0.3% dip in May. On the year, house prices were up 2.5% in June, down from 2.6% growth in May. The average price of a property stood at £296,665 last month, down from £296,782 the month before.
International events
Americans lined up for unemployment benefits at a decelerated pace in the week ended 5 July, according to the Labor Department, pointing to a labour market that remains relatively robust despite high interest rates and economic uncertainty. Initial jobless claims fell to 227,000, dropping from a downwardly revised reading of 232,000 in the prior week and marking the fourth consecutive decline and the lowest count in seven weeks.
German inflation was confirmed at an eight-month low in June, according to final estimates from the Federal Statistical Office on Thursday, as price pressures for food eased and energy prices continued to fall. The year-on-year rate of consumer price inflation in Germany slowed to just 2.0% last month, in line with the preliminary estimate released two weeks ago.
Shares of jet manufacturer Boeing shot higher midweek following a report that investigators had narrowed their search into the causes of a recent Air India crash and that available data did not point to design or mechanical issues with the plane or engine manufacturer . According to Dow Jones Newswires, officials were now focusing on the position and movement of the engine fuel control switches on board Air India flight AI171 before it crashed on 12 June, just minutes after taking off.
Nvidia's share price reached a new high on Wednesday in New York, with the chip titan becoming the first publicly traded company in history to be worth more than $4trn. The Nasdaq-listed stock rose to an intraday high of $164.42 early on, sending its market capitalisation above the $4trn mark before falling to $163.07 by 1112 ET, equating to a value of $3.98trn.
American pharma giant Merck announced on Wednesday that it is to pay $10bn for UK-based respiratory disease specialist Verona Pharma. Verona Pharma, whose ADR shares trade on the Nasdaq, is being taken over for $107 each, up from Tuesday's closing price of $86.86, causing the share price to surge 21% in early deals on Wall Street. According to Merck, the acquisition aligns its science-led business development strategy and expands its pipeline and portfolio of treatments for cardio-pulmonary diseases.
US mortgage applications surged 9.4% in the week ended 4 July, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America, extending the prior week's 2.7% increase. Applications to refinance a mortgage and applications to purchase a home both rose 9% week-on-week. The increase marked a third consecutive weekly growth in applications, the longest streak since December, and came as benchmark mortgage rates dropped to their lowest level since April.
Volkswagen saw deliveries tick higher in the first half of the year, the German car giant confirmed on Wednesday, despite a slide in sales to the US. The Wolfsburg-based group, which also owns Audi, Skoda and Porsche, said it delivered 4.41m vehicles worldwide during the six months to June end, up 1.3% on the previous year. The main driver was a 18% uplift in sales to South America. In western Europe, deliveries edged 1% higher, and rose 9% in central and eastern Europe.
Copper prices soared on Wednesday, after Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs of 50% on the industrial metal. Announcing the latest salvo in his global trade war, the US president said before a cabinet meeting on Tuesday: "Today we're doing copper." He added that the levy would likely be 50%, higher than the 25% the market had been expecting. Commerce secretary Howard Lutnick later said in a CNBC interview that he expected tariffs to be put in place by the end of July or early August.
China's consumer prices rose for the first time in five months in June while producer prices plunged 3.6% year on year, the largest fall in nearly two years, according to official data published on Wednesday. The consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.1% compared with June 2024, the National Bureau of Statistics said. Economists had forecast a flat reading compared to the same period a year earlier. On a monthly basis, the CPI fell 0.1%. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, core CPI rose 0.7% year-on-year, the highest reading in 14 months.
Luxury carmaker Porsche has reported lower sales for the first half of 2025 with deliveries in China falling by nearly a third compared with last year. The German manufacturer said vehicle deliveries totalled 146,391 in the first six months of the year, down 6% on last year, though the rate of decline eased slightly after an 8% reported year-on-year fall in the first quarter.
Small business optimism in the United States fell slightly in June, following the first increase in six months in May, as taxes topped the list of the biggest challenges for American firms. The National Federation of Independent Business on Tuesday reported that its Small Business Optimism Index fell just 0.2 points to 98.6 last month, more or less in line with analysts' expectations.
The Reserve Bank of Australia held interest rates at 3.85% on Tuesday, saying it needed "a little more information to confirm that inflation remains on track to reach 2.5% on a sustainable basis". Australia's central bank said that six policymakers voted in favour of standing pat, with three against. Analysts had been expecting a 25 basis points rate cut to 3.6%.
Shein has reportedly filed papers for an initial public offering in Hong Kong, increasing the pressure on UK regulators to not miss out on what could be London's largest stock-market debut in years. According to the Financial Times on Tuesday, the fast fashion online giant has confidentially filed a draft prospectus with Hong Kong Exchange (HKEX) and filed for approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).
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