LONDON MARKETS: FTSE 100 Finishes Higher As Barclays Rallies

By Carla Mozee and Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

U.K. blue-chip index scores a 3.4% monthly rise, but breaks 5-week win streak

U.K. stocks ended a choppy session slightly higher Friday, shrugging off reports of a slump in U.K. consumer confidence.

The FTSE 100 rose a little less than 0.1% to close at 6,724.43. The blue-chip index 3.4% higher on the month, but slipped 0.1% for the week, breaking a five-week winning run.

Equities started muted after the Bank of Japan disappointed investors by making no change to its purchases of Japanese government bonds (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bank-of-japan-oks-more-stimulus-keeps-rate-steady-2016-07-29) or its key interest rate on bank reserves.

"However, much in the same manner as the Bank of England and European Central Bank decisions, markets typically have the ability to look past short-term disappointments to instead focus upon the bigger picture," said Josh Mahony, market analyst at IG, in a note early Friday.

"With the chance of a Bank of England rate cut currently priced in as 100%, we are not far away from a fresh bout of monetary stimulus in the U.K., which would arguably provide more of a boost to U.K. markets than any action in Japan," he said.

The Bank of England will release its monetary-policy decision and quarterly inflation report on Thursday. The central bank is widely expected to cut its benchmark interest rate to 0.25% from 0.5% in a bid to cushion the British economy from the impact of Brexit, or the U.K.'s pending exit from the European Union.

Investors have spent much of the week sifting through corporate-earnings reports.

Movers: Shares of Barclays PLC (BCS) (BCS) topped the FTSE 100 by rising 5.5%. The banking heavyweight reassured investors about its course of business in the wake of the U.K.'s Brexit referendum, including plans to close "as soon as possible" non-core assets.

"We remain confident that it is the right plan for Barclays, and see no reason to adjust it, or the pace of delivery, in light of the vote by the UK last month to exit the EU," said Barclays Chief Executive Jes Staley, in a statement.

Total income at Barclays fell 9% to GBP11 billion (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/barclays-profit-takes-hit-from-asset-sales-2016-07-29-24853442)($14.49 billion) in the first six months of the year.

But Pearson PLC shares (PSON.LN) sank to the bottom of the benchmark, losing 9.1% as the education specialist said half-year adjusted sales fell 7% from a year ago (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/pearson-books-loss-as-sales-fall-holds-dividend-2016-07-29). Pearson left its dividend unchanged at 18 pence.

SABMiller PLC (SAB.JO) (SAB.JO) shares rose 2.1% as the brewer's board recommended a higher-priced takeover offer (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/sabmiller-board-backs-ab-inbevs-higher-buyout-bid-2016-07-29) from Anheuser-Busch InBev NV's (ABI.BT) (ABI.BT) of GBP45 a share ($60). The revised offer came in the weak of a plunge in the value of the pound.

Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC (RB.LN) , whose consumer brands include Lysol and Scholl, shares fell 1.6%. First-half profit fell 19% (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/reckitt-benckiser-profit-falls-sees-no-brexit-hit-2016-07-29), largely because of a charge related to the South Korean market. The company added that its "global footprint means we expect no tangible impact from uncertainty over Brexit."

But U.K. consumer confidence appears to have taken a hit in July following the Brexit vote. Market research firm GfK said its consumer confidence gauge fell 11 points between June and July (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/uk-consumer-confidence-sinks-post-brexit-2016-07-28), the largest month-on-month drop since 1990.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 29, 2016 12:29 ET (16:29 GMT)

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