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Direct Line leads FTSE 100 higher FTSE 100 lifted by Rolls-Royce and Direct Line
(about 4 hours later)
Direct Line led the market higher as investors welcomed the insurer's half-year results. Shares in aerospace giant Rolls-Royce led the FTSE higher, jumping 9% after its profits beat expectations.
Shares in the company jumped 7% after it reported a 9.5% increase in operating profits to £354.2m. The company reported a 12% rise in revenues to £7.57bn for the first six months of the year, helped by a 27% increase in large engine deliveries.
Direct Line was the biggest riser on the FTSE 100, with the index up 37.50 points at 7,409.50. Rolls also said cost savings were ahead of schedule and it was on target to hit profit forecasts.
Rolls-Royce was another big riser, with its shares up nearly 6% after a big rise in engine deliveries helped it swing back to profit. The company reported a first-half pre-tax profit of £1.94bn, compared with a £2.15bn loss a year earlier.
The aerospace giant said large engine deliveries were up by more than a quarter, savings were ahead of schedule and it was also on target to hit profit forecasts. Underlying profits more than doubled to £287m, comfortably beating analysts' forecasts.
The company reported a pre-tax profit of £1.94bn for the first half of the year compared with a £2.15bn loss a year earlier. By midday, Rolls-Royce was the biggest riser on the FTSE 100, with the index up 45.75 points at 7,417.75.
Shares in British Gas owner Centrica were up 3% as the company announced it was raising household electricity prices by 12.5%. Intertek Group was another big riser, up 8.7%, after the product testing company said its half-year profits rose more than 20% to £210.3m.
In the currency markets, the pound slipped 0.1% against the dollar to $1.3206 but rose 0.2% against the euro to 1.1182 euros. Shares in Direct Line were up nearly 7% after the insurer reported a 9.5% increase in operating profits to £354.2m.
On the currency markets, the pound was unchanged against the dollar at $1.3216 and 0.2% higher against the euro at 1.1184 euros.