(Sharecast News) – London’s FTSE 100 was down 0.7% at 7,622.85 in afternoon trade on Wednesday.
Whitbread rallied to the top of the index after the Premier Inn owner posted a 44% jump in interim adjusted pre-tax profit, hiked its dividend and announced a £300m share buyback.
Housebuilders were under the cosh after Barratt Developments said it remains on track to hit targeted home completions but that the outlook for the year “remains uncertain”. Taylor Wimpey and Berkeley fell.
The sector was also dented after a hotter-than-expected UK inflation print raised expectations that interest rates will need to remain elevated.
BA and Iberia owner IAG flew lower after United Airlines said it was forecasting weaker earnings for the fourth quarter due to higher costs.
St James’s Place was in the red after HSBC cut the shares to ‘hold’.
FTSE 100 – Risers
Whitbread (WTB) 3,423.00p 3.01%
Endeavour Mining (EDV) 1,705.00p 1.61%
BT Group (BT.A) 118.55p 1.02%
Fresnillo (FRES) 562.80p 0.90%
M&G (MNG) 200.00p 0.86%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 1,038.00p 0.83%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 5,910.00p 0.65%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 6,174.00p 0.62%
Vodafone Group (VOD) 77.98p 0.54%
Haleon (HLN) 340.35p 0.49%
FTSE 100 – Fallers
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 107.55p -3.76%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 408.00p -3.75%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 10,868.00p -3.57%
Weir Group (WEIR) 1,759.00p -2.52%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 4,006.00p -2.27%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 142.80p -2.19%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,218.50p -2.16%
St James’s Place (STJ) 654.40p -2.12%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 211.10p -2.09%
Mondi (MNDI) 1,345.00p -2.07%
