FTSE100 opened deep in the red as Gamestop fever spilled over into the UK. Wall Street dropped heavily overnight as the unprecedented battle between US hedge funds and online retail traders spread while London’s blue-chip index was down 93 at 6,473.
US tech giants reporting yesterday were also affected. Apple shares fell even though quarterly revenues soared to a new record of US$111bn. iPhone sales boomed during the quarter.
Facebook also sailed past market forecasts but saw its shares fall. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Facebook is looking at reducing political content and at ways to stop people using the site being directed toward political groups.
NASDAQ:TSLA) meanwhile beat revenue expectations but missed on earnings. Elon Musk said going forward it is looking at deliveries to grow by 50% a year on average.
Astra Zeneca and the EU have said they will work together to try to resolve the vaccine crisis in Europe. A vaccine war of words had broken out in recent days after the UK pharma reduced supplies to the EU.
Among the small caps, AFC Energy PLC (LON:AFC) has unveiled its new zero-emission power generator that will be featured in Extreme E. The new electric SUV racing series, which will highlight the impact of climate change on some of the world's most fragile ecosystems, will begin in April in Saudi Arabia.
Belvoir Group PLC (LON:BLV) upgraded profit expectations thanks to a strong rebound in demand for house sales and mortgages after the first lockdown. The agent’s revenue jumped 12% in 2020, higher than pre-pandemic forecasts.