Business
Stocks in green as US manufacturing surprises
Stock prices in London closed higher on Thursday, after a surprise drop in US jobless claims.
The FTSE 100 index closed up 54.59 points, 0.5%, at 10,238.94. The FTSE 250 ended up 322.67 points, 1.4%, at 23,279.98, and the AIM All-Share closed up 2.79 points, 0.4%, at 804.48.
London-based asset manager Schroders was the strongest FTSE 100 performer, up 9.8%, after it forecast adjusted operating profit of at least £745 million for 2025, up 24% from £603.1 million a year earlier.
On the FTSE 250, Ashmore led with a 24% jump.
The London-based emerging markets-focused asset manager’s total assets under management stood at 52.5 billion dollars at December 31, up 7.8% from 48.7 billion dollars at September 30, thanks to 2.6 billion dollars in positive net flows and 1.2 billion dollars in positive investment performance in the three months.
Ashmore said that its near-term outlook for emerging markets investment is underpinned by continued superior growth compared with the developed world.
Dunelm led the laggers, falling 20%.
The Leicestershire, England-based homewares retailer said total sales rose 1.6% year-on-year in the 13 weeks to December 27, bringing first-half sales to £926 million, up 3.6%.
However, trading in the second-quarter was softer than anticipated, and Dunelm now expects financial 2026 pre-tax profit to land at the lower end of the analyst consensus range of £214 million to £227 million.
In small caps, Panther Metals rose 17%.
The London-based mineral deposits explorer has signed a three-year purchase option over three gold and base metal properties in Ontario’s Obonga greenstone belt, securing rights through January 2029.
Foxtons lost 6.3%.
The London-based real estate and lettings agency reported full-year 2025 revenue of around £172 million, up from £163.9 million, with broadly flat adjusted operating profit.
Foxtons forecast revenue and profit growth in 2026, although it said sales begin the year with a lower under-offer pipeline and Q1 2026 sales revenues are set to be below Q1 2025.
In European equities on Thursday, the CAC 40 in Paris closed down 0.2%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt ended up 0.4%.
Troops from several European countries, including France, Germany, the UK, Norway and Sweden, are arriving in Greenland in a show of support for the Arctic island’s security.
The move came after talks between representatives of Denmark, Greenland and the US on Wednesday highlighted “fundamental disagreement” between the Trump administration and European allies on the future of the autonomous territory of Denmark.
The pound was quoted lower at 1.3388 dollars at the time of the London equities close on Thursday, compared to 1.3450 dollars on Wednesday. The euro stood at 1.1607 dollars, lower against 1.1650 dollars. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at 158.48 yen, up from 158.25 yen.
Stocks in New York were higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.7%, the S&P 500 index up 0.6%, and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.9%.
Two US manufacturing surveys showed unexpectedly strong improvements for January.
The Empire State manufacturing survey showed that the headline general business conditions index climbed 11.4 points to 7.7 points in January, compared to negative 3.7 points in December, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported. It was ahead of the FXStreet-cited consensus, which had expected an improvement to plus one point in January.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s January manufacturing business outlook survey showed the general activity index jumped to 12.6 points in January from a revised reading of negative 8.8 points in December. The FXStreet consensus had expected a more modest improvement to negative two.
Separately, US import prices increased 0.4% over the two months to November from September, while US export prices increased 0.5% over the same period, figures from the Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS) showed.
The BLS did not collect survey data for October due to the federal government shutdown.
US initial jobless claims unexpectedly fell in the week just gone, numbers from the Department of Labour showed.
New unemployment insurance claims in the week that ended January 10 – this past Saturday – fell to 198,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 207,000. The latest reading was below the FXStreet-cited market consensus of a rise to 215,000 initial claims.
The four-week moving average was 205,000, down 6,500 from the previous week’s revised average of 211,500. This is the lowest level for this average since January 20 2024, when it was 203,250.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.16%, widening from 4.14%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.78%, narrowing from 4.80%.
Brent oil was quoted at 63.55 dollars a barrel at the time of the London equities close on Thursday, down from 65.97 dollars late on Wednesday.
The European Commission announced that the price cap for Russian oil will be lowered again.
In July, EU countries agreed to lower the price cap from 60 dollars to 47.60 dollars per barrel and to introduce an automatic mechanism with the aim that the cap would always be 15% lower than the average market price for Urals crude in the previous six months.
This adjustment mechanism has now caused the cap to be lowered to 44.10 dollars per barrel from February 1.
Gold was quoted at 4,616.76 dollars an ounce, down against 4,621.15 dollars.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Schroders, up 41p at 458.4p; 3i, up 288.65p at 3,323.6p; Persimmon, up 55p at 1,406.5p; Smiths, up 91.5p at 2,551.5p; and LondonMetric Property, up 7.2p at 202.6p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Burberry, down 42p at 1,288.5p; AstraZeneca, down 320p at 14,026p; GSK, down 32.5p at 1,848p; Compass, down 40p at 2,281p; and BT, down 2.7p at 180.9p.
On Friday’s economic calendar, look out for German consumer inflation and US industrial production.
On Friday’s UK corporate calendar, Johnson Service and MJ Gleeson have trading updates scheduled.
Contributed by Alliance News.
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Washington: The International Monetary Fund on Monday raised India’s economic growth projection for 2025 by a sharp 0.7 percentage point to 7.3 per cent, citing stronger-than-expected performance in the second half of the year, even as it expects growth to moderate in the coming years.
In its World Economic Outlook Update, the IMF said the upward revision reflects a “better-than-expected outturn in the third quarter of the year and strong momentum in the fourth quarter,” underscoring India’s position as one of the fastest-growing major economies in the world.
The IMF projected that India’s growth would ease to 6.4 per cent in 2026 and 2027 as cyclical and temporary factors wane.
Despite the expected moderation, India remains a key driver of growth among emerging market and developing economies, which the IMF said are projected to expand at just over 4 per cent in 2026 and 2027.
Emerging and developing Asia continues to benefit from strong technology-related investment and trade, even as global momentum becomes uneven.
The update noted that global growth is projected to hold steady at 3.3 per cent in 2026, supported by easing trade tensions, accommodative financial conditions and a surge in investment linked to technology, particularly artificial intelligence.
Inflation trends were also favourable for India. The IMF said inflation in India “is expected to go back to near target levels after a marked decline in 2025, driven by subdued food prices,” offering additional support to domestic demand.
However, the IMF cautioned that risks to the outlook remain tilted to the downside. A reassessment of expectations around AI-driven productivity gains could lead to a pullback in investment and tighter global financial conditions, with spillover effects for emerging economies.
On the upside, the Fund said faster adoption of artificial intelligence could lift global growth, provided productivity gains materialise, and financial risks are contained.
Adrienne MurrayBusiness reporter, Helsinki
Aker Arctic TechnologyAs President Donald Trump continues to insist that the US needs to own Greenland, his wider focus on the Arctic region has seen Washington order new icebreakers.
For these ships, which can sail through seas covered in solid ice, the US has gone to the world expert – Finland.
Temperatures are sub-zero inside Aker Arctic Technology’s ice laboratory, as the scale model of an icebreaker cruises down a 70m-long simulation tank.
It ploughs a neat channel through the frozen surface of the water.
Undergoing testing at a facility in Helsinki, Finland’s capital, this is a design for the next generation of the country’s icebreakers.
“It’s crucial that it has sufficient structural strength and engine power,” says ice performance engineer, Riikka Matala.
Mika Hovilainen, the firm’s chief executive, adds that the shape of the vessel is also crucial. “You have to have a hull form that breaks ice by bending it downwards,” he says. “It’s not cutting, it’s not slicing.”
Finland is the undisputed world leader when it comes to icebreakers. Finnish companies have designed 80% of all those currently in operation, and 60% were built at shipyards in Finland.
The country leads the way out of necessity, explains Maunu Visuri, president and chief executive of Finnish state-owned company Arctia, which operates a fleet of eight icebreakers.
“Finland is the only country in the world where all the harbours may freeze during wintertime,” he says, adding that 97% of all goods to the country are imported by sea.
During the coldest months, icebreakers keep Finland’s ports open, and work as pathfinders for big cargo ships. “It’s really a necessity for Finland. We say that Finland is an island.”
It was this expertise that saw Trump announce in October that the US planned to order four icebreakers from Finland for the US Coast Guard.
A further seven of the vessels, which the US is calling “Arctic Security Cutters”, are to be built in the US, using Finnish designs and expertise.
“We’re buying the finest icebreakers in the world, and Finland is known for making them,” said Trump.
Adrienne MurrayUnder US law, the country’s naval and coastguard ships must be domestically-built, but in this case the president waived that requirement on national security grounds. He cited “aggressive military posturing, and economic encroachment by foreign adversaries”, by which he means Russia and China.
This US concern comes as climate change continues to make the Arctic Ocean more navigable for cargo ships, at least if icebreakers lead the way by cutting a path. This opens up commercial trade routes from Asia to Europe, either above Russia, or north of Alaska and Canada’s mainland, and down past Greenland.
Reduced ice levels also mean that oil and gas fields beneath the Arctic are more accessible.
“There’s simply a lot more traffic in that part of the world now,” notes Peter Rybski, a retired US Navy officer and Helsinki-based, Arctic expert.
“You have an active oil and gas exploration and extraction industry in Russia, as well as a newly-emerging trans-shipment route from Europe to Asia.”
Rauma Marine ConstructionsFollowing Trump’s outline announcement last autumn, the first contracts were awarded on 29 December.
Finland’s Rauma Marine Constructions is to build two icebreakers for the US Coast Guard at its shipyard in the Finnish port of Rauma. The first ship is due to be delivered in 2028.
A further four will be constructed in Louisiana, with all six using an Aker Arctic Technology diesel-electric powered design.
The US orders are part of an effort to catch up with the number of Russian icebreakers. Currently Russia has around 40, including eight that are nuclear powered.
By contrast, the US presently only has three in operation.
Meanwhile China operates around five polar-capable vessels. “None of them are technically icebreakers,” says Rybski, pointing to their design not meeting the strict criteria. “But they are increasing their fleet.”
He adds that China has increasingly been sending these “research” ships into Arctic waters between Alaska and the far east of Russia, including areas that the US considers its “exclusive economic zone”.
“With limited means to respond this becomes a problem [for the US].”
Trump’s desire to enlarge its icebreaker fleet goes beyond the practicalities of operating in ice-clad Arctic seas, assesses Lin Mortensgaard, a researcher at the Danish Institute of International Studies. She says it is also about projecting power.
“No matter how many aircraft carriers you have and how much you use them to threaten states with, you cannot sail your aircraft carrier into the central Arctic Ocean,” she says.
“Icebreakers are really the only kind of naval vessel to signal that you are an Arctic state, with Arctic capabilities. And I think this is what much of the US discourse is about.”
James BrooksBack in Finland, Helsinki Shipyard occupies a dock on the capital’s waterfront. It is where half of the world’s icebreakers have been made. Today owned by Canadian firm Davie, it also hopes to win new contracts from the US Coast Guard.
“The geopolitical situation has changed definitely,” says the shipyard’s managing director, Kim Salmi.
“We have our eastern neighbour here [Russia]. They are building their own [new] fleet. And the Chinese are building their fleet.”
He adds: “The US, Canada and the western allies in general, are looking for the power balance.”
Inside a cavernous shipbuilding hangar, workers cut and weld steel for the yard’s latest icebreaker, a heavy-duty Arctic vessel, called Polarmax that’s destined for the Canadian coastguard.
The Finns can build these complex vessels remarkably swiftly – it takes between two-and-a-half and three years – thanks to a streamlined production method, and decades of experience.
“Over 100 years, we have practised this,” says Arctia’s Visuri. “You’ve got this cycle of designers, operators, builders. That’s why Finland is the superpower of icebreakers.”
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