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Stock prices in London were mostly higher on Wednesday morning, with shares in blue chip electricity generator SSE jumping as it unveiled a multi-billion pound investment plan through 2030. The FTSE 100 index opened up 6.00 points, 0.1%, at 9,905.60. The FTSE 250 was up 9.30 points, 0.1%, at 22,159.18, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.24 points, 0.1%, at 759.48. The Cboe UK 100 was marginally down at 987.99, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.1% at 19,149.33, and the Cboe Small Companies was up 0.1% at 17,944.76. In Europe, markets opened firmly in the green, with the CAC 40 in Paris up 0.8% and Frankfurt’s DAX 40 rising 1.1%. Germany’s consumer price inflation rate was confirmed on Wednesday, showing a further easing on an annual basis but a mild pickup month-on-month. Germany’s annual CPI rate fell to 2.3% in October from 2.4% in September, with the harmonised rate the same for both months. The country’s annual CPI slowed to 2.3% in October from 2.4% in September, while the harmonised index of consumer prices remained steady at 2.3%. Monthly, prices rose 0.3% in October, accelerating slightly from 0.2% in September. All figures matched preliminary estimates published on October 30. Meanwhile, wholesale prices rose 1.1% annually in October, easing from September’s 1.2% increase, though monthly growth accelerated modestly. The pound was quoted at $1.3128 early Wednesday in London, down from $1.3173 at the close on Tuesday. The euro traded at $1.1579, down from $1.1594, while the dollar strengthened to JP¥154.74 from JP¥154.02. SSE led the FTSE 100, soaring 11% after unveiling a fully funded £33 billion investment plan through 2030. The Perth-based electricity generator said it will allocate £27 billion to UK electricity networks and £6 billion to renewables and flexibility projects. It expects earnings per share to grow 50% and dividends by 5% to 10% annually over the decade, maintaining net debt-to-Ebitda below 4.5 times. In its interim results, SSE reported a 31% fall in pretax profit to £586.3 million in the six months to September 30, down from £845.9 million a year earlier, as earnings per share declined 45% to 26.4 pence from 47.7p. Revenue, however, rose 3.9% to £4.63 billion from £4.46 billion. The firm declared an interim dividend of 21.4p, up from 21.2p, and reaffirmed its full-year EPS target range of 175p to 200p. Games Workshop climbed 4.5% after Jefferies raised its price target to 18,300p from 11,850p, maintaining a ’buy’ rating. BAE Systems added 0.5% after confirming trading in the second half was in line with expectations and reiterating upgraded full-year guidance issued in July. The defence group said its order intake surpassed £27 billion so far this year, including £4 billion for Typhoon aircraft for Turkey and multiple US defence contracts. ‘The recently announced spending increases across NATO provide a very supportive backdrop for growth over the medium term,’ BAE said. Auto Trader fell 2.0%, the weakest FTSE 100 performer, after Bank of America downgraded the stock to neutral’ from buy’ and cut its price target to 820p from 920p. In Germany, Bayer rose 3.7% after the pharmaceutical and chemicals company reaffirmed its overall guidance but trimmed its adjusted sales growth outlook for the Consumer Health division, citing a more challenging market environment. The Leverkusen-based firm reported a narrowed net loss of €959 million for the third quarter of 2025, compared with €4.19 billion a year earlier. Loss per share improved to 98 cents from €4.26, while net sales declined 3.1% to €9.66 billion from €9.97 billion. On the FTSE 250, Taylor Wimpey dropped 4.0% after warning of ‘softer’ market conditions in the second half, citing lingering uncertainty in the housing market ahead of the November 26 budget. The housebuilder reiterated guidance for 2025 UK completions of 10,400 to 10,800 and group operating profit, including joint ventures, of around £424 million. At the other end, Avon Technologies jumped 6.6% after guiding for high single-digit revenue growth in financial 2026 and confirming it remains on track for an operating margin of 14% to 16%. The group posted financial revenue of $313.9 million, up 14% from $275.0 million, and pretax profit of $13.1 million, up sharply from $2.3 million. Its final dividend rose to 17.0 US cents from 16.1 cents, bringing the total annual payout to 24.6 cents, up 5.6%. Among smaller caps, Quantum Blockchain surged 38% after announcing the launch of its Method C software version, highlighting that the software-only approach offers ‘additional commercial advantage.’ In Asia, the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo rose 0.4%. The Shanghai Composite in China slipped 0.1%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.9%. Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 closed down 0.2%. In the US on Tuesday, Wall Street ended mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.2% to a record close, the S&P 500 added 0.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.3%. The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.09%, narrowing from 4.12%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.69%, narrowing from 4.71%. Brent oil was priced at $64.71 a barrel early Wednesday in London, down slightly from $65.19 late Tuesday. Gold edged up to $4,130.70 an ounce from $4,108.75. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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