FTSE Up for 10 Sessions in a Row Before Tech Earnings This Week

Wall Street futures fell about 0.5% ahead of major earnings reports from Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta, with markets closely watching Apple’s supply chain impacts from tariffs. Asian shares rose marginally, while European equities awaited speeches from ECB officials and a US Dallas Fed manufacturing update. Meanwhile, hopes for a June US rate cut sit at a 63% probability ahead of key payrolls data and inflation reports this week.

Equities

The FTSE 100 rose 0.09% on Friday, extending its winning streak to ten consecutive sessions, its longest in eight years, and securing a second straight week of gains. The domestically focused FTSE 250 also gained, rising 0.5% for its third consecutive weekly advance.

Babcock International Group rose 1.5% after forecasting annual operating profit above market expectations, with the aerospace and defence sector climbing 1.7% overall.

Mobico Group shares fell sharply by 40.9% following the announcement of the sale of its US school bus business for a lower-than-expected $608 million. The company also warned that 2024 earnings would likely come in at the bottom end of its guidance range.

Marks & Spencer dropped 2.2% after pausing orders via its UK and Ireland websites and apps, following a reported cyber attack earlier in the week.

Across the Atlantic, major US indices closed higher for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.05% to 40,113.50, the S&P 500 climbed 0.74% to 5,525.21, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.26% to 17,382.94. Gains were led by technology-related shares, with Alphabet rising 1.7% after beating profit expectations and reaffirming its AI investment plans.

Investors paid close attention to corporate earnings calls amid ongoing concerns about the impact of tariffs. President Trump claimed tariff negotiations with China were underway, though Beijing denied this. Regardless, market sentiment was supported by hopes that the worst of the trade dispute might be behind us. The MSCI gauge of global stocks rose 0.60%, and European shares also notched their second consecutive weekly gain.

Forex & Commodities

The dollar steadied on Monday morning, trading at 143.49 yen and $1.1375 per euro, as traders awaited a busy week of economic data releases.

Despite Friday’s bounce on hopes of easing US-China tensions, the greenback is set for its largest monthly decline in nearly two and a half years, having fallen more than 4% against both the euro and the yen in April. Sterling slipped 0.1% to $1.3325 on Friday, even after strong UK retail sales figures showed a 0.4% rise in March.

Gold prices fell 0.8% last week to $3,292.11 an ounce, weighed down by a firmer dollar and reduced demand for safe-haven assets. Silver dropped 0.9% to $32.80 an ounce, platinum was flat at $971.29, and palladium fell 0.7% to $942.15.

Brent crude oil prices rose 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $67.08 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude gained 24 cents, or 0.4%, to $63.26 a barrel. Both benchmarks rose for a third consecutive session, though remain pressured by expectations that OPEC+ could propose accelerating oil output increases at its 5 May meeting. Last week, Brent and WTI both fell by more than 1% amid concerns about oversupply and ongoing trade uncertainty.