The City of London wrapped up Budget Day Eve in buoyant mood, with both stocks and bonds rallying as investor confidence strengthened ahead of the Chancellor’s statement.
The FTSE 100 climbed strongly to close 0.8pc higher at 9,609.53, supported by a broad rally in banking stocks after reports suggested the sector will be spared from a fresh tax raid in the Chancellor’s Budget.
Bank shares led the charge, with NatWest jumping 3.9pc to 604.8p, Lloyds rising 3.8pc to 90.7p and Barclays advancing 2.4pc to 410p as investor confidence returned to the sector.
Retail also provided a boost. Kingfisher, the owner of B&Q, surged 6pc to 310p after upgrading its annual profit guidance, marking it out as one of the standout performers of the session.
The upbeat mood spread to mid-cap stocks, with the FTSE 250 adding 1pc to finish at 21,617.41, rounding off a positive day for UK equities ahead of the much-anticipated Budget.
The optimism extended to the bond market, where UK government debt also enjoyed strong demand. 10-year gilt yields fell by five basis points to 4.495%, while 30-year yields dropped four basis points to 5.32%, reflecting increased buying and easing borrowing costs for the government.
With markets clearly buoyed by expectations of a more business-friendly Budget, all eyes now turn to tomorrow’s announcements and their potential impact on the economy and investment landscape.
Tech wobble drags Nasdaq as Nvidia slides on rising competition fears
Across the pond we see a sharp pullback in Nvidia weighed on US tech stocks, leaving the Nasdaq largely flat, even as the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average surged higher in a broad-based rally across non-tech sectors.
The world’s most valuable chipmaker came under pressure amid growing concern that its dominance in the AI hardware market could be challenged by Alphabet, following reports that the Google parent is positioning its own chips as a serious alternative.
