London close: Markets stabilise ahead of Fed meeting

28th Oct 2014 16:35

UK stocks ended Tuesday's session on an upbeat note thanks to a strong performance by the mining sector and a level of stability not seen on markets for several weeks.The FTSE rose early on, dipped around 10:30, but recovered to deliver a steady performance throughout the afternoon, ultimately ending at 6,402.17, marking a gain of 38.71.Investors are looking ahead to the outcome of the two-day Federal Reserve meeting, with the Fed expected to announce on Wednesday the end of its bond purchase programme as part of its latest policy decision.The US central bank is also forecast to keep interest rates unchanged."I think any major surprises tomorrow is very unlikely simply because there is no press conference following the decision, which means there would be no opportunity to question any big changes in policy or stance," said Alpari UK analyst Craig Erlam.Investors were also digesting data out from the States, which showed that US consumer confidence rose to 94.5 in October, up from 89 in September, while home-price growth declined in August.Spreadex's David White said: "It looks as if, for now at least, the market has stabilised from the recent bout of volatility and rebalancing, making buying risk somewhat more palatable than this time last week. Investors will be aware that November and December are typically good months for equities, as money managers look to allocate and companies resume buying back their stock after third quarter earnings. Only time will tell."Banking stocks slideShares in banking group Standard Chartered dropped after the company reported a 16% decline in operating profit in the third quarter and issued a profit warning, saying that full-year earnings would be lower than last year.Underlying profits were higher than expected at Lloyds Banking Group, rising 44% year-on-year in the third quarter, but shares fell sharply as analysts raised concerns about further PPI impairment charges and the outlook for the UK housing market.Lower prices and higher costs led to a worse-than-expected 26% drop in adjusted profits at BG Group in the third quarter despite higher revenues, pushing the stock lower.Jefferies International dragged GlaxoSmithKline after cutting its target price from 1,400p to 1,350p.Meanwhile, the upside was led by the mining sector, with Anglo American, Glencore, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto among the best performers, thanks in part to a jump in copper prices.BP reported that profits fell by almost a fifth in the third quarter, but the stock moved higher after the oil major still beat the market's expectations and said it was "well on track" to hit its targets this year.Market MoverstechMARK 2,708.62 +0.77%FTSE 100 6,402.17 +0.61%FTSE 250 15,123.35 +0.55%FTSE 100 - RisersAnglo American (AAL) 1,344.50p +3.70%Dixons Carphone (DC.) 392.10p +3.43%Antofagasta (ANTO) 700.50p +3.24%Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,009.00p +3.17%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 413.20p +3.07%St James's Place (STJ) 695.00p +3.04%Vodafone Group (VOD) 203.55p +2.96%Mondi (MNDI) 1,012.00p +2.53%Aviva (AV.) 517.50p +2.27%Glencore (GLEN) 319.45p +2.17%FTSE 100 - FallersStandard Chartered (STAN) 998.40p -8.82%Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 73.50p -2.44%BG Group (BG.) 1,026.00p -1.63%GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,386.50p -0.89%Aggreko (AGK) 1,490.00p -0.60%Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,492.00p -0.47%Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 406.60p -0.32%Pearson (PSON) 1,133.00p -0.26%Whitbread (WTB) 4,324.00p -0.25%InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 2,264.00p -0.18%FTSE 250 - RisersPets at Home Group (PETS) 188.00p +5.03%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 214.40p +4.59%Kazakhmys (KAZ) 228.10p +4.35%Brit (BRIT) 249.50p +4.31%Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 98.65p +3.24%Drax Group (DRX) 598.50p +3.10%Tullett Prebon (TLPR) 274.50p +3.04%Evraz (EVR) 132.00p +2.96%Debenhams (DEB) 63.55p +2.92%Foxtons Group (FOXT) 159.70p +2.77%FTSE 250 - FallersSynthomer (SYNT) 199.40p -6.30%Morgan Advanced Materials (MGAM) 272.30p -4.86%Playtech (PTEC) 739.50p -3.21%Petra Diamonds Ltd.(DI) (PDL) 165.00p -3.00%Infinis Energy (INFI) 216.50p -2.04%Soco International (SIA) 319.10p -2.03%Micro Focus International (MCRO) 978.50p -1.41%SIG (SHI) 148.40p -1.26%Telecom Plus (TEP) 1,420.00p -1.25%PayPoint (PAY) 885.00p -1.23%