FTSE marks time as London’s biggest firms report results

FTSE 100 made a slow start as a big week for economic news and blue chip and tech results hit its stride in earnest. London’s leading index added 2 points to 6,965 in early trading.

In a results-rich day, PLC () said a recovering UK economy helped quarterly profits rebound by 79%. The bank’s home country delivered a particularly strong performance after bad debts were lower than expected.

Similarly, () beat profit forecasts thanks to higher oil prices and revenue from natural gas trading. The oiler is restarting share buybacks in the second quarter after hitting debt reduction targets early.

() slumped to a £1bn full-year loss but most of its hotels are now open. The group expects strong demand for ‘staycations’ in the UK and eyes market share gains in Germany.

Tesla’s underlying profits meanwhile topped US$1bn in its first quarter as it pocketed a large gain from Bitcoin. After splashing out US$1.5bn on buying the cryptocurrency in February, the electric car maker revealed a US$101mln “positive impact” and said it had sold 10% of its holding.

Among the small caps also reporting,  () boosted revenues by a quarter despite what it said was “the toughest economy in recent memory”. The AIM-listed firm said its product and consulting segments did even better and grew by 39%.

 () said the strong momentum it enjoyed last year has continued into 2021, with the company trading marginally ahead of expectations. Licensing revenues in the first quarter of 2021 rose by 60% year-on-year.