FTSE 100 movers: Burberry up on China hopes; Centrica deflated

(Sharecast News) - FTSE 100: 7,581.34, up 0.36% at 1502. UK stocks extended gains on Wednesday as eurozone PMI data indicated the recession may not be as deep as expected and investors awaited the latest minutes from the Federal Reserve for any hints on the path of interest rates.

The FTSE 100 was up 0.59% at 1200 GMT after a strong Tuesday session where shares kicked off 2023 with a 1.4% gain. Sentiment was slightly tempered by a fall in US shares overnight.

Oil edged lower after slumping in the previous session, weighed down by concerns about weak demand due to the state of the global economy and China's rising Covid cases.

Brent futures for March delivery fell 43 cents to $81.67 a barrel, a 0.5% loss, by 0700 GMT. US crude dropped 39 cents, or 0.5%, to $76.54 per barrel. Both benchmarks plunged more than 4% on Tuesday, with Brent suffering its biggest one-day loss in more than three months. The news hit FTSE 100 heavyweights Shell & BP, while lower gas prices saw British Gas owner Centrica and SSE fall for the second successive day.

There was no major corporate news to drive trade, but the latest British Retail Consortium-NielsenIQ tracker, revealed that food inflation rose to 13.3% in December, from 12.4% a month earlier.

The BRC warned 2023 would be "another difficult year for consumers and businesses as inflation shows no immediate signs of waning".

"Retailers will continue to work hard to support their customers and keep prices low. However, further high investment in prices may no longer be viable once the government's energy bill support scheme for business expires in April," said BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson.

Separate data from Kantar showed the impact of inflation on take-home grocery sales, which hit £12.8bn for the four weeks to 25 December 2022, driven by higher prices rather than increased spending. The news boosted retailers Ocado Group, B&M Value Retail and Sainsbury.

Burberry shares gained as the high-end fashion chain was boosted by hopes of a re-opening of its key Chinese market.

FTSE 100 - Risers

Ocado Group (OCDO) 696.60p 7.40% Fresnillo (FRES) 962.00p 6.70% Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 235.60p 4.76% Burberry Group (BRBY) 2,165.00p 4.74% B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 442.60p 4.34% BT Group (BT.A) 119.40p 4.01% Prudential (PRU) 1,221.00p 3.74% DCC (CDI) (DCC) 4,283.00p 3.48% CRH (CDI) (CRH) 3,516.00p 3.21% Smith (DS) (SMDS) 337.50p 3.08%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Centrica (CNA) 87.18p -5.18% Glencore (GLEN) 518.20p -4.81% BP (BP.) 468.30p -3.11% SSE (SSE) 1,618.50p -2.71% Shell (SHEL) 2,306.00p -2.58% Anglo American (AAL) 3,209.50p -1.76% BAE Systems (BA.) 851.60p -1.23% Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,546.00p -1.02% Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 5,766.00p -0.69% Haleon (HLN) 321.45p -0.48%