Global equities jump higher on hopes of consumer resilience

Global equities jumped higher on Tuesday on the back of optimism about consumer resilience in the face of rising inflation, which also helped drive the dollar to a 16-month high.

DUBLIN

Euronext Dublin was down 30 basis points on Tuesday as it underperformed relative to its international peers.

Glenveagh Properties was up 5 per cent as the company announced plans to buy back a further €100 million of shares, after completing the sale of a 4.6-acre residential and hotel site at Castleforbes Business Park in Dublin's docklands.

There were mixed fortunes for the banks, with AIB down 4 per cent while Bank of Ireland was up slightly. A trader linked AIB's fall to the Government's plans to formally launch its review into the banking sector later this week.

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The airlines were weaker on the day, with Ryanair down 1 per cent, while, among the leisure names, Paddy Power Betfair parent Flutter Entertainment was down 1.5 per cent.

Elsewhere, packaging company Smurfit Kappa was up 1 per cent as it outperformed its peers which were down on the day.

LONDON

London's FTSE 100 slipped, weighed down by weaker shares of AstraZeneca and heavyweight consumer staples stocks, although upbeat earnings updates from Vodafone and spirits maker Diageo limited overall declines.

The blue-chip index closed 0.3 per cent lower, with drugmakers AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline down 4.1 per cent and 1.9 per cent, respectively.

Large dollar-earning companies including British American Tobacco, Reckitt Benckiser and Unilever fell and were among the biggest drags on the index.

Vodafone jumped 4.8 per cent to top the FTSE 100, as the mobile operator increased its free cash flow outlook after it reported a solid growth in earnings in its first half.

Among other stocks, Diageo added 1.2 per cent as the Johnnie Walker whisky maker forecast double digit sales growth in the first half.

Restaurant Group climbed 16.8 per cent after the Wagamama owner raised its annual profit outlook. Land Securities Group gained 3.7 per cent, after the UK's largest commercial property firm swung to a half-year profit.

EUROPE

Some European stock indexes extended their record rally on Tuesday, boosted by shares of Dutch technology investor Prosus and French luxury group Kering and lifted by optimism over the easing of US-China tensions.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed 0.2 per cent higher, while Germany’s DAX, France’s CAC 40, and euro zone shares all rose to new peaks.

Prosus rose 4.2 per cent after forecasting higher profit for the first half of 2022. Kering was on top of the CAC 40, gaining 4.4 per cent after its top brand Gucci said it expected 2021 revenues to be in line or higher than their pre-pandemic level.

The telecom sector was boosted by a 0.5 per cent jump in Vodafone after the company lifted its annual free cash flow outlook.

Elsewhere, Portuguese food retailer Jeronimo Martins plunged 11.1 per cent after Asteck, a unit of the Heerema Group, sold its entire 5 per cent stake in the company.

NEW YORK

Consumer stocks drove Wall Street higher as Walmart forecast a strong holiday quarter and monthly retail sales beat expectations, helping investors look past uncertainty over hawkish measures by the Federal Reserve.

Walmart, the country's largest brick-and-mortar retailer, raised its annual sales and profit forecasts, but its shares fell 3 per cent as supply chain woes hit its third-quarter margins.

Retailer Home Depot jumped 5.9 per cent to a record after beating quarterly same-store sales estimates.

Nvidia rose 0.7 per cent despite the UK ordering an in-depth probe of the chipmaker's planned $50 billion-plus acquisition of chip designer Arm.

Chipmaker Qualcomm rose 3.2 per cent after it said German automaker BMW will use its chips in its next generation of driver-assistance and self-driving systems.

Electric-car maker Tesla rose 2.4 per cent, even as CEO Elon Musk sold $930 million in shares. The stock had tumbled around 13 per cent after Musk began selling shares last week. – Additional reporting: Agencies