Dividend-paying IAG today provided one of the London market’s few bright spots in a session dominated by US recession and tech sector worries. The British Airways owner surged 6% or 9.7p to 169.7p after results showed second quarter profits in line with the previous year’s record of 1.25 billion euros (£1.06 billion).
It also set aside 147 million euros (£125 million) for next month’s dividend payment of three euro cents. This will be IAG’s first distribution since the pandemic in a move chief executive Luis Gallego said showed confidence “in our performance and our transformation”.
Defensive focused stocks were also in favour in London as Smith & Nephew continued its progress following yesterday’s results by adding another 16p to 1215p and consumer healthcare firm Haleon lifted 4.5p to 362.5p.
The FTSE 100 index fell 22.70 points to 8260.66, which represented a decent showing given the turbulence in other global markets.
Japan’s stock market was the worst hit as the Nikkei 225 closed 5.8% lower, its worst performance since 2020 due to yen strength and the selling of tech stocks after Wall Street’s Nasdaq Composite closed 2.3% lower.
US traders are braced for another tough session later today after Intel shares slumped 19% in dealings following Thursday’s closing bell. The chipmaker said it would axe 15% of its workforce and suspend its dividend on the back of a disappointing second quarter.
Recession jitters also swept through Wall Street yesterday after weekly initial jobless claims rose to their highest in nearly a year at 249,000. The focus is now on today's non-farm payrolls figures, which are forecast to slow to 175,000 from 206,000 in June.
Deutsche Bank said: “The past 24 hours have seen an increasingly precarious backdrop for risk markets, with a risk-off mood on the back of another batch of weak US data yesterday followed by mostly downbeat tech earnings overnight.”
Heavily sold stocks in the FTSE 350 included Baillie Gifford Japan Trust, which lost 6% or 42p to 710p, and Alphabet backer Pershing Square Holdings with a fall of 158p to 3638p.
