FTSE holds above 7,000, M&S rallies after update, Bitcoin steady near $40k By Investing.com

Key Points

• FTSE 100 closing price of 7,028.6, -0.02%
• M&S shares jump on as overhaul plan picks up pace
• British Land falls after trading update
• FX markets quiet
• US crude inventories fall by 1.662mln barrels
• Cryptos steady, Bitcoin near $40K

By Samuel Indyk

Investing.com – The FTSE 100 continued its achingly slow week with the index trundling along in a narrow range above 7,000.

Marks and Spencer Group (LON:MKS) shares rose to the top of the FTSE 250 after the retailer announced more plans to overhaul its physical stores, closing some locations and taking on stores in others. Separately, the company said it expects to make a profit of around £300-350mln this year, while trading in the first six weeks of the financial year had been ahead of initial expectations.

On the other hand, British Land (LON:BLND) shares fell after the company announced its third consecutive yearly loss.

“This demonstrates that although the value of its office and retail properties has been ravaged by the pandemic, the company’s problems did not start and end with Covid,” said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould in an emailed note.

FX markets were mostly quiet too although USD demand was seen heading into the 4pm fix, which weighed slightly on GBP/USD and EUR/USD. There was no major data released from Europe or the US with focus turning to Thursday’s US GDP figure.

WTI and Brent Oil Futures were also trading relatively rangebound ahead of the weekly crude oil inventory data. US crude oil inventories declined by 1.662mln barrels in the latest week versus expectations of a drawdown of 1.05mln barrels.

Cryptocurrencies continued to stabilise following the volatility seen last week. Bitcoin briefly traded above $40,000 and its 200DMA but retreated after failing to make a firm break higher and trades below both key technical levels. Ethereum is also showing signs of relative strength, holding on to gains above $2,700.

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