MARKET REPORT: IAG leads Footsie higher as airline shares take off

Airline stocks flew as the industry bounced back after a brief sell-off fuelled by concern over lower summer prices.

British Airways owner IAG rose 3.7 per cent, or 6.6p, to 184p while Easyjet added 2.9 per cent, or 14.6p, to 524.8p and Wizz Air increased 5.3 per cent, or 110p, to 2192p.

The gains came a day after Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary warned that ticket prices were likely to rise by less this summer than previously thought. 

The industry continues to rebound following the pandemic when lockdowns brought travel to a standstill.

Shares in IAG, which publishes first-quarter results tomorrow, are up almost a fifth this year.

Record high: AstraZeneca rose 1.3%, or 156p, to 12,274p, making it the most valuable company on the FTSE 100 ahead of Shell, with a market capitalisation of £190bn

The FTSE 100 hit a new high of 8365 early on before easing back to settle up 0.5 per cent, or 40.38 points, at 8354.05.

The FTSE 250 rose 0.4 per cent, or 78.91 points, to 20,491.99. AstraZeneca neared a record high as it faced renewed controversy over its vaccine for Covid. 

The stock rose 1.2 per cent, or 146p, to 12,264 – just shy of its record close of 12,294p in April last year.

Astra is the most valuable company on the FTSE 100 ahead of Shell with a market capitalisation of nearly £190billion.

The latest rally came as the drug maker pulled its Covid jab amid waning demand. 

It was hailed for saving lives and helping the world emerge out of lockdowns but it also came under scrutiny for causing fatal blood clots. 

But the shares are up more than 16 per cent this year, boosted by strong demand for its cancer drugs.

Stock Watch – Brighton Pier Group

A cocktail of woes – from the cost of living to poor weather and train strikes – has hurt the Brighton Pier Group.

The owner of Brighton Pier and the Lightwater Valley Theme Park in North Yorkshire reported an £8.8million loss in the 12 months to Christmas Eve, in stark contrast to the £7.6million profit it made in the 18 months to Christmas Day, 2022.

It now plans to charge a £1 tourist admission fee.

Shares tumbled 10.3 per cent, or 4.5p, to 39p.

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Informa, the world’s largest exhibitions group, raised its share buyback programme by around 50 per cent to £500million. 

The company behind the Taylor & Francis academic research business and China Beauty Expo trade show in Shanghai, also signed an AI deal with Microsoft. Shares gained 2.3 per cent, or19p, to 850.4p.

Engineer Renishaw sank after revenues fell 4 per cent to £502.9million in the nine months to the end of March while profits plunged by more than a quarter to £86.8million. Shares fell 4.2 per cent, or 175p, to 3980p.

Shell fell 0.2 per cent, or 5p, to 2890p after agreeing to sell its refinery and petrochemical assets in Singapore. 

Boohoo racked up a £160million loss and fell 0.1 per cent, or 0.04p, to 35.26p after the fashion firm’s sales slumped almost a fifth in the year to the end of February.

Mike Ashley’s retail empire is closing in on a deal to become the British partner of Ted Baker, Sky News reported. Frasers rose 0.9 per cent, or 7p, to 823p.

Alliance Pharma chief executive Peter Butterfield, has quit and will be replaced by consumer health veteran Nick Sedgwick. It fell 8.3 per cent, or 2.65p, to 29.35p.

Don Robert, the chairman of video games developer Keywords Studios bought more than £50,000 worth of stock, lifting it 7.5 per cent, or 88p, to 1267p. 

Land Securities sold its hotels for £400million to Ares Management and EQ but dipped 0.5 per cent, or 3.5p, to 683p.

Three antique programmes produced by STV Group’s studio arm have been recommissioned by the BBC. It follows several other commissions this year. STV rose 2 per cent, or 5p, to 250p.