LONDON CLOSE
Footsie smashed its way back above 6,600 today as Greece hedged it bets in its stand-off with creditors.
The FTSE 100 Index, which has fallen for four days in a row, rose 88 points to 6,609, while the FTSE 250 put on 196 points at 17,717.
The market rallied after it appeared that Greek premier Alexis Tsipras was preparing to accept creditors' demands tabled at the weekend, but the Eurogroup of Eurozone finance ministers may still find it tough to accept Tsipras's amended proposals, which reportedly included a slower ramp-up of the retirement age.
Commentators also questioned what would happen to Athens' plans for a referendum on the creditors' proposals if Tsipras appeared to accept them.
Serco (LON:SRP) led the rise, bouncing 7.7p to 125.7p as the troubled outsourcing group reported slightly better-than-expected first half trading.
After several profit warnings and a rescue rights issue, investors appeared to welcome some stability, with Serco saying its full year expectations remained unchanged.
Sirius Minerals (LON:SXX) soared 43% to 21.5p as the UK potash miner said the North York Moors National Park Authority had approved its mine and mineral transport system planning application.
Graphene specialist Haydale (LON:HAYD) has extended its relationship with US tech marketing hot house InVentures, sending the share 4.8% higher to 121p.
Building on a 2014 consulting agreement, InVentures will now provide US arm Haydale Tech with financial, strategic and management planning advice to build it into a centre of excellence for graphene and other nanomaterials.
On the downside, plant hire group Speedy Hire (LON:SDY) tumbled 22p to 49p as it warned on profits and said its chief executive had quit.
News that a third party who subscribed for £145,000 of shares in Independent Oil & Gas (LON:IOG) last month had not yet paid for them hit the North Sea oil firm's stock by 4.125p to 16.625p.
Shares in LightwaveRF (LON:LWRF) dimmed 6p to 31p on news that the remote control lighting group expected short-term revenue to miss market expectations.
US OPEN
US stocks shot out of the traps on hopes that a post-last minute deal will be done on Greece’s debt problems.
Sentiment also received a boost from payrolls processing firm ADP, which released jobs data for June that indicated companies raised employment levels by the most in six months.
Payrolls rose 237,000 in June from a revised 203,000 increase in May; the release is regarded as a not always reliable indicator to the official US non-farm payrolls data out later this week.
Car makers were in focus, as car sales numbers for June were released. General Motors saw a 3% decline, the inverse of what analysts had expected, while gains from Ford and Chrysler were less than the market had been expecting.
The S&P 500 was racing ahead, up 19 points at 2,082 while the Nasdaq Composite was 49 points to the good at 5,036. The Dow Jones industrial average was 154 points higher at 17,774.
The insurance sector seems to be going merger mad at the moment, and today’s big deal involved Chubb, which is to be acquired by ACE in a cash plus shares deal worth US$28.2bn.
There was mixed news from the food and drink sector. Foods group General Mills disappointed with its fiscal fourth quarter revenues, and spice maker McCormick lost its zing as it blamed the strong dollar for a dip in second quarter profits, but Constellation Brands was wanted after its first quarter earnings came in ahead of expectations.
MOST FOLLOWED
The escalating cost of London property, Greece (of course) and Heathrow were among the eclectic pot of news threads piquing investor interest midweek.
We've probably all missed a payment of one kind of another at some point but how about £1.1bn to the International Monetary Fund..
That's what Greece did last night and now they're waking up to smell the coffee.....
Now, on the cards is a potential emergency loan to Greece from the ECB and a discussion over a third bailout proposal from Greece - lasting two years. All this comes amid the backdrop of a Greek referendum on bailout terms this Sunday.
It most definitely isn't 'easy'....as Lionel Richie famously did not sing.
He's also in the news today post his appearance at Glasto, where he drew the biggest crowd at this year's music fest. Amazon has reported a massive spike in sales of his albums since the performance.
Also, the 25 year long argument about a third Heathrow airport flew up again after a report from the Airports commission backed the plan.
It would add £147bn to the economy by 2050 but is heavily objected to due to the proximity to many hundreds of residential properties in West London. Mayor Boris Johnson is one high profile objector and was quoted as saying it's "not going to happen".
After the disappointment in Lancashire of those in favour of shale gas fracking , comes news today that the giant potash mine in the North York moors from Sirius Minerals (LON:SXX) received the green light from planners at the National Park authority last night.
The company's shares raced up over 80% on the milestone news. It was also the second most traded stock today, after Sirius Minerals (LON:SXX).
London is officially the most expensive place to rent an office and the record had been broken at a new development in St James's Square.
The Helly Nahmad Gallery has signed a 15-year lease to pay £185 per sq ft across 2,959 sq ft on the sixth floor of the building at No 8.
Elsewhere, FTSE 250 firm Galliford Try (LON:GFRD) revealed it has been awarded the contract to build the £360mln Silvertown Way development in Canning Town.
It will be delivered via a joint venture with Thames Valley Housing Association, and Galliford will build more than 1,100 homes - the largest standalone scheme it has done.
Galliford shares added 1.32% to stand at 1,760p on the day..
LONDON OPEN
London’s blue chip shares finally got back to winning ways in early trading as traders shrugged off Tuesday's Greek default in the hope of an eventual deal.
The FTSE 100 Index, which has fallen for four days in a row, climbed 37.08 points to 6558.06 in the first hour of trading.
Greece failed to make a €1.6bn repayment to the International Monetary Fund, but Eurozone finance ministers will meet to discuss the latest bailout proposals from Athens.
Markets rose as traders speculated about the outcome of this weekend's Greek referendum on whether to accept the creditors' terms for a deal.
Even if the Greek people vote for the aid programme proposed, that may not be the end of the matter as it could see the government resign and a new round of elections.
US markets seemed unconcerned by the IMF non-payment, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 24 to 17,620 and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also seeing modest gains.
The second quarter had seen modest declines in all three US markets due to the concerns over the economy and rate rises. Netflix was the stand-out performer with gains of 58% for the content streaming giant.
Asia markets were better performers. Hong Kong saw the best of the gains adding more than 1%, Tokyo edged up slightly and Shanghai fell again.
On the UK company front, Serco (LON:SRP) bounced 15.1p to 133.1p as the troubled outsourcing group reported slightly better-than-expected first half trading.
After several profit warnings and a rescue rights issue, investors appeared to welcome some stability, with Serco saying its full year expectations remained unchanged.
Pub and brewing group Greene King (LON:GNK) frothed up 8.5p to 853p as it reported a record year despite lower underlying profits.
Road haulier Wincanton (LON:WIN) motored 2p to 184p after announcing a contract with bike and car accessory retailer Halfords to be sole operator of its national transport contract.
Sirius Minerals (LON:SXX) jumped 9.75p to 24.75p as the UK potash miner said the North York Moors National Park Authority had approved its mine and mineral transport system planning application.
LONDON PRE-OPEN
London’s blue chip index is set to rally despite Greece overnight becoming the first western country ever to default on a loan from the IMF.
Footsie is tipped to open up to 35 points higher and reversing some of the near-100 point yesterday to 6,521.
Of course, with Greece this is not the end of the story.
It has asked the IMF for an extension to its loan, while a plea for more help from the European Union has been rejected until the result of next weekend’s referendum on an EU aid package is known.
Even if the Greek people vote for the aid programme, that may not be the end of the matter as it could see the government resign and a new round of elections.
US markets seem unconcerned by the IMF non-payment, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 24 to 17,620 and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also seeing modest gains.
The second quarter had seen modest declines in all three US markets due the concerns over the economy and rate rises. Netflix was the stand-out performer with gains of 58% for the content streaming giant.
Asia markets were better performers this morning. Hong Kong saw the best of the gains adding more than 1%, Tokyo edged up slightly and Shanghai fell again.
On the UK company front, troubled outsourcing giant Serco (LON:SRP) has a pre-close update for its first half on Wednesday.
After several profit warnings and a rescue rights issue, some evidence that the business has at least stabilised will be the minimum market will want to see.