European markets end week on a high after choppy session

Markets endured a choppy session throughout Europe but the top indices closed in the green. London markets gained ground after an extraordinarily turbulent week that ended with the chancellor ousted and prime minister Liz Truss reversing a key policy in their fiscal plan. Meanwhile, US stocks fell after a report showed US inflation expectations rose for the first time in seven months.

Dublin

Shares gained on the Dublin market on Friday, ending the week on a positive note. The Euronext Dublin closed the session almost 1.7 per cent up on the day, driven by gains achieved by building and food groups, with Bank of Ireland also putting in a decent showing on the day. The latter closed at €7.64, up 1.84 per cent, outperforming rival stock AIB, which shed 1.1 per cent to close at €2.89.

Elsewhere, Smurfit Kappa was up 2.2 per cent, while Kerry Group also showed progress, closing at €90.04, a 3.35 per cent gain over the day. Insulation specialist Kingspan closed at €48.77, almost 5 per cent higher.

Bellwether stock CRH lost 0.5 per cent.

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London

It has been a difficult week for the FTSE 100 which closed at an 18-month low on Wednesday that shaved off 0.9 per cent of the index’s value. But it seems investors were reasonably happy about Kwasi Kwarteng getting the sack after just 38 days as chancellor. The FTSE 100 ended the session 0.12 per cent higher, or 8.52 points, at 6,858.79.

In company news, hospitality chain Loungers told shareholders that it was planning to open 19 more sites over the rest of the financial year. The firm, which owns chains Cosy Club and Lounge, hailed a strong performance of its new venues. Its share price moved up by nearly 1 per cent on Friday.

FTSE 100-listed packaging and paper firm Mondi echoed the optimistic sentiment and revealed its earnings more than doubled over the third quarter. Shares in the global firm moved up 2 per cent after it said that higher average selling prices of its products had more than offset cost inflation of key materials including wood.

Among the biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Ocado Group, which rose 21p to 456.8p, and Segro, up 27.6p to 739.4p. The biggest fallers were Harbour Energy, down 21.1p to 399.1p, Fresnillo, down 26p to 702.2p and BAE Systems, down 28.8p to 790.8p.

Europe

European shares gained on Friday marking an upbeat end to the week, helped by an initial boost after the British government’s turnaround on tax cuts, but this faded due to continued uncertainty about its fiscal stance.

The STOXX 600 index closed up 0.6 per cent, building on Thursday’s rally. The German Dax was up by 0.93 per cent and the French Cac was 1.18 per cent higher.

Among individual stocks, Temenos slumped 19 per cent after the Swiss banking software group slashed its 2022 guidance. UPM-Kymmene added 5.7 per cent after the Finnish forestry group reported higher Q3 results and said it expected 2022 adjusted EBIT to improve compared with 2021.

New York

The S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 turned sharply lower after a University of Michigan survey showed year-ahead inflation expectations rose in early October and the long-term outlook also crept up. The S&P 500 fell 1.3 per cent as of 11.20am New York time, while the Nasdaq 100 was down 1.8 per cent.

Big banks including JPMorgan Chase & Co and Wells Fargo & Co rose after reporting results, while Morgan Stanley slipped as equity trading revenue disappointed in the first wave of results.

On the geopolitical front, Russian president Vladimir Putin said there was no need for massive strikes on Ukraine right now and that a direct clash with Nato would be catastrophic. He also said that Moscow’s aim was not to destroy its neighbour.

Elsewhere, oil headed for weekly losses as signs of a global economic slowdown and tighter monetary policy threaten to sap energy consumption. The International Energy Agency earlier warned crude production cuts agreed by Opec+ group risked causing a price spike that tipped the global economy into recession.

– Additional reporting, PA, Bloomberg, Reuters