The China Mail - London stocks hit record high on tariff optimism

USD -
AED 3.6725
AFN 68.500767
ALL 83.650195
AMD 383.740036
ANG 1.789623
AOA 917.000168
ARS 1255.771603
AUD 1.518535
AWG 1.8025
AZN 1.699594
BAM 1.668636
BBD 2.020399
BDT 121.679557
BGN 1.671324
BHD 0.377009
BIF 2981.413623
BMD 1
BND 1.279674
BOB 6.939711
BRL 5.532197
BSD 1.000601
BTN 85.690153
BWP 13.33339
BYN 3.274649
BYR 19600
BZD 2.009991
CAD 1.366665
CDF 2885.999797
CHF 0.797305
CLF 0.024758
CLP 950.059844
CNY 7.175299
CNH 7.180395
COP 4015.7
CRC 504.651927
CUC 1
CUP 26.5
CVE 94.750118
CZK 21.077021
DJF 177.719836
DKK 6.381645
DOP 60.201883
DZD 129.786021
EGP 49.513198
ERN 15
ETB 135.375002
EUR 0.855315
FJD 2.261989
FKP 0.736163
GBP 0.736975
GEL 2.70977
GGP 0.736163
GHS 10.398008
GIP 0.736163
GMD 71.500142
GNF 8655.999873
GTQ 7.68709
GYD 209.351631
HKD 7.84955
HNL 26.350155
HRK 6.442403
HTG 131.286287
HUF 340.946504
IDR 16215
ILS 3.30675
IMP 0.736163
INR 85.73505
IQD 1310
IRR 42112.501063
ISK 122.029986
JEP 0.736163
JMD 159.910246
JOD 0.708992
JPY 146.307011
KES 129.504736
KGS 87.449424
KHR 4021.000199
KMF 421.501385
KPW 899.989949
KRW 1371.760527
KWD 0.30571
KYD 0.833891
KZT 519.10468
LAK 21530.000051
LBP 89599.999784
LKR 300.589969
LRD 200.999896
LSL 17.729749
LTL 2.95274
LVL 0.60489
LYD 5.394991
MAD 9.002495
MDL 16.930368
MGA 4429.999979
MKD 52.594017
MMK 2099.551903
MNT 3586.805132
MOP 8.090897
MRU 39.703014
MUR 45.150598
MVR 15.400468
MWK 1736.497632
MXN 18.612131
MYR 4.256016
MZN 63.959878
NAD 17.730255
NGN 1530.519845
NIO 36.749849
NOK 10.086305
NPR 137.104074
NZD 1.657591
OMR 0.384503
PAB 1.000601
PEN 3.546002
PGK 4.12475
PHP 56.449783
PKR 284.505474
PLN 3.634204
PYG 7755.344063
QAR 3.640596
RON 4.3415
RSD 100.168026
RUB 77.80135
RWF 1434
SAR 3.750397
SBD 8.326487
SCR 14.347863
SDG 600.497378
SEK 9.51093
SGD 1.279695
SHP 0.785843
SLE 22.498647
SLL 20969.503664
SOS 571.4971
SRD 37.367976
STD 20697.981008
SVC 8.755263
SYP 13001.930426
SZL 17.729878
THB 32.609717
TJS 9.681127
TMT 3.51
TND 2.900761
TOP 2.342097
TRY 40.163795
TTD 6.794671
TWD 29.258799
TZS 2629.999596
UAH 41.880479
UGX 3585.88681
UYU 40.653701
UZS 12662.501804
VES 113.606295
VND 26125
VUV 119.443863
WST 2.750992
XAF 559.644909
XAG 0.026949
XAU 0.000301
XCD 2.70255
XDR 0.695413
XOF 558.000342
XPF 102.296461
YER 241.849645
ZAR 17.74261
ZMK 9001.196762
ZMW 23.44008
ZWL 321.999592
  • CMSC

    0.0900

    22.314

    +0.4%

  • CMSD

    0.0250

    22.285

    +0.11%

  • RBGPF

    0.0000

    69.04

    0%

  • SCS

    0.0400

    10.74

    +0.37%

  • RELX

    0.0300

    53

    +0.06%

  • RIO

    -0.1400

    59.33

    -0.24%

  • GSK

    0.1300

    41.45

    +0.31%

  • NGG

    0.2700

    71.48

    +0.38%

  • BP

    0.1750

    30.4

    +0.58%

  • BTI

    0.7150

    48.215

    +1.48%

  • BCC

    0.7900

    91.02

    +0.87%

  • JRI

    0.0200

    13.13

    +0.15%

  • VOD

    0.0100

    9.85

    +0.1%

  • BCE

    -0.0600

    22.445

    -0.27%

  • RYCEF

    0.1000

    12

    +0.83%

  • AZN

    -0.1200

    73.71

    -0.16%

London stocks hit record high on tariff optimism
London stocks hit record high on tariff optimism / Photo: © AFP

London stocks hit record high on tariff optimism

Stocks largely rose on Thursday, with London striking a record high, as investors remained optimistic that governments will reach deals to avoid US tariffs.

Text size:

The dollar climbed versus main rivals while oil prices slid.

Bitcoin steadied after topping $112,000 for the first time on Wednesday.

Wall Street's main indices wobbled in morning trading, a day after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite set fresh highs thanks to a surge in US chip titan Nvidia that pushed the firm to a record $4 trillion valuation at one point.

But as European market's closed, both the Dow and S&P 500 were in the green.

In Europe, London's FTSE 100 index rose more than one percent to set a new all-time high, lifted also by a surge in mining stocks after US President Donald Trump said he would enact a 50-percent copper tariff on August 1.

Paris stocks advanced, tracking gains in Asia, but Frankfurt ended the day lower.

"European markets in general continue to shrug off Donald Trump's daily tariff updates, perhaps seeing them as noise and not facts," said Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell.

"Trump is throwing out numbers left, right and centre, and investors have begun to dismiss anything that isn't set in stone," he added.

Negotiators from around the world have been trying to reach agreements with Washington since Trump in April unveiled his "Liberation Day" tariff bombshell, with a July 9 deadline pushed back to August 1.

"Indications that the EU is edging closer to a deal with the US, with an agreement thought to be possible in a few days, has added to the positive vibes," said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.

The EU expects Trump to keep a 10-percent baseline tariff on EU goods with exemptions for critical sectors such as airplanes, spirits and cosmetics.

Letters have been sent in recent days to more than 20 trading partners -- including Japan and South Korea -- setting out new tolls, with some higher and some lower than the initial levels.

There was little global reaction to news that Trump had hit Brazil with a 50-percent tariff as he blasted the trial of the country's ex-president Jair Bolsonaro.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said he would impose reciprocal levies on the United States.

Brazil had not been among those threatened with higher duties, with the United States running a goods trade surplus with the South American giant.

Traders were given few guides on the US Federal Reserve's interest rate plans after minutes published on Wednesday from its June policy meeting showed officials divided on the best way forward.

While the board sees the president's tariffs as inflationary, the minutes said there remained "considerable uncertainty" on the timing, size and duration of the effects.

"There is an understanding that the tariffs could invite higher prices and worsening inflation, but the stock market and the Treasury market continue to operate with an attitude of 'seeing is believing'," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare.

"They haven't seen enough in the hard data to be convinced that the inflation threat is coming to fruition," he added.

- Key figures at around 1530 GMT -

New York - Dow: UP 0.6 percent at 44,732.82 points

New York - S&P 500: UP 0.2 percent at 6,278.04

New York - Nasdaq Composite: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 20,596.43

London - FTSE 100: UP 1.2 percent at 8,975.96 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.3 percent at 7,902.25 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.4 percent at 24,456.81 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.4 percent at 39,646.36 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.6 percent at 24,028.37 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,509.68 (close)

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1679 from $1.1719 on Wednesday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3558 from $1.3590

Dollar/yen: UP at 146.49 yen from 146.30 yen

Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.14 pence from 86.21 pence

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.6 percent at $69.07 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.8 percent at $67.12 per barrel

burs-rl/jj

F.Brown--ThChM