Good morning from London where the FTSE 100 is up by around a third of a percent so far this morning, bolstered by some very strong starts in the world of insurance.
Aviva PLC (LSE:AV.) is up more than 7% on the day – broker Jeffries said yesterday that it expects Aviva to deliver a best-in-class capital return yield…and the strongest free cash flow amongst peers.” Legal & General, Beazley and Prudential are all up as well.
In energy, Shell PLC (LSE:SHEL, NYSE:SHEL) is reported a rebound in gas trading during the third quarter, pushing its shares higher while Exxon Mobil is reportedly close to purchasing America’s Pioneer Natural Resources in a whopping US$60 billion deal.
JD Wetherspoon PLC (LSE:JDW) also up so far this morning after the pub chain reported a return to profit over the year to July.
GSK PLC (LSE:GSK, NYSE:GSK) investors happy to see the biopharma company announce the sale of a further chunk of Haleon shares, raising some £885.6 million.
Outside of the stock market Halifax is saying today that property prices have slipped for a sixth month in a row and 4.7% over the year, leaving the average down at around £278k.