The FTSE 100 Index rose for the fourth successive session on Thursday, going at 8,751 points and up by 0.48% at the time of writing. The rise came on a day when aerospace engineering giant, Rolls Royce, announced forecast-beating quarterly earnings and announced the first dividend payout in five years.
Also, the market has its eyes fixed on UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s visit in the United States, where he is expected to hold trade talks with US President, Donald Trump. Equities markets have been subdued by tariff grandstanding, with the momentum expected to spike from March. Trump has threatened a new set of trade tariffs against allies in the Eurozone, but it remains to be seen what Starmer’s visit will get for the UK.
In early February, the Bank of England (BoE) announced the third interest rate cut in five months, and has lined up more cuts this year. That augurs well for equities and the FTSE 100 Index trajectory. Rolls Royce was the biggest gainer of the day, rising by 18% at the time of writing. Other high performers included London Stock Exchange Group (+5.4%), Aviva (+2.8%) and International Consolidated Airline Group (+2.45%).
As seen on the chart below, FTSE 100 Index pivot is at 8,700 points and the momentum indicator signals control by the buyers. The momentum will likely meet initial resistance at 8,736 points mark. Breaking above that level will strengthen the momentum and potentially test the second resistance at 8,773.
On the other hand, going above 8,700 points will signal a shift in the momentum to the downside. In that case, initial support is likely to come at 8,673. The upside narrative will be invalid if the price breaks below that level. Also, the resulting momentum could extend the downside and drive the index lower to test the second support at 8,648 points.
This post was last modified on Feb 27, 2025, 15:24 GMT 15:24