FTSE 100 Live: Stocks surge to two-month high, Vodafone and Greggs in favour

• FTSE 100 up 81 points to 8,780
• Diploma and Greggs top leaderboard after results
• Vodafone little moved after its numbers  

4.58pm: FTSE closes higher

The FTSE 100 Index rose 0.9% to 8,781, gaining 82 points today.

4.16pm: London stocks at two month high

London's blue-chip index is heading towards notching up a strong session on Tuesday, rising to its highest in over two months and around a hundred points away from its all-time high. 

Engineer Diploma is continuing to lead the way, up 14% after its strong first-half results this morning, beating consensus forecasts and upgrading full-year guidance.

Vodafone shares have gathered more strength as the day's gone on, now up 6.8% after its final results earlier, which showed some improvements finally coming through from Germany and the UK, with debt levels moving towards less lofty levels. 

European stocks indices are all in green, with Germany's DAX up 0.3% to notch a new all-time intraday high. 

3.42pm: Shell called out on emissions at AGM

As well as protests at its HQ, Shell PLC (LSE:SHEL, NYSE:SHEL) has faced criticisms about its climate impact at its annual general meeting's Q&A session.

A week after a second climate case against the company was launched, Donald Pols, director of Milieudefensie, the Dutch arm of Friends of the Earth, called out Shell CEO Wael Sawan at the AGM.

Last week, Milieudefensie initiated a new case calling for Shell to drop drilling for new oil and gas fields, of which its research shows that another 700 are in the pipeline that will cause the company's emissions to keep growing. 

Today, Pols said: "Shell continues to hide behind governments and consumers, while the court clearly ruled in November that Shell has its own responsibility to reduce its emissions."

The campaign organisation said the oil giant's investments in new fields are driving its emissions up in the near future, which "means the company is not fulfilling its duty of care and is facing legal risk".

In February, Milieudefensie announced it would seek a review by the Supreme Court in its first climate case against Shell, which revolves around the reduction of Shell’s total emissions in line with the Paris Climate Agreement for the period leading up to 2030. The process is still ongoing.

3pm: FTSE 100 continues surges, as Wall Street slides

The FTSE 100 is continuing to charge higher, while Wall Street stocks have opened in reverse gear, led by declines for travel & leisure and tech stocks.  

The S&P 500 dropped 0.3%, while the tech heavy Nasdaq slid 0.5%, the blue-chip Dow Jones dipped 0.2% and the small cap Russell 2000 fell 0.3%.

On the S&P, Norwegian Cruise Line, Carnival Corp, Airbnb, Royal Caribbean Cruises and Las Vegas Sands were among the bigger fallers, sinking between 2% and 4%. 

Nvidia also led declines for the tech giants, slipping 1.6%, with Microsoft and Apple both down less than 1%. 

Back in London, the Footise is being helped higher by defensive pharma, tobacco, banks and retailers. 

2.05pm: Cranswick investigation

Cranswick PLC has launched an independent review of its animal welfare practices and UK livestock operations following reports of animal mistreatment at one of the farms in its network, which led to grocers Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons suspending supplies. 

The company said it had suspended operations at Northmoor Farm in Lincolnshire after covert video footage appeared to show workers using banned methods to kill piglets.

In response, Cranswick confirmed it would not process any pigs originating from the site.

Chief executive Adam Couch said: “We take seriously any instance, anywhere in our supply chain, where behaviour fails to meet those standards. We are therefore instigating a new, fully independent, expert veterinarian review of all our existing animal welfare policies, together with a comprehensive review of our livestock operations across the UK.”

The company said it will provide further updates on the review in due course.

The announcement comes as Cranswick reported record sales and profits for the past year.

1.25pm: BT union rejects below-inflation pay offer 

A pay offer from BT Group PLC (LSE:BT.A) has been rejected as "derisory" by one of its largest trade unions.

Of members who voted on the pay offer, 96% rejected it.

"This overwhelming rejection of what is a derisory and insulting pay offer shows the strength of feeling among our members," said Rachel Curley, Prospect's deputy general secretary.

"We have notified the employer of our rejection. It is now time for BT to negotiate a fair award for Prospect members and show more respect for their managers." 

12.11pm: FTSE and other European markets climb, US futures down

The FTSE 100 has added just over 50 points so far today, reaching its highest levels since early March. 

Engineers Diploma and Smiths Group are the top risers. 

Retailers Howden Joinery, Sainsbury's, M&S are also all up over 2%. Hotelier Whitbread and airline easyJet are not far off, to extend the consumer theme as the pound gains strength, rising close to $1.34 this morning.

"The focus is on earnings, higher bond yields in Japan and a weakening dollar," says market analyst Kathleen Brooks at XTB.

"Monday’s wobble in US stocks did not trigger a move higher in the Vix index, which suggests that volatility is low, risk sentiment remains high and global stocks can continue to recover, even if US equity market futures are pointing to a lower open later today."

Indeed, Wall Street's main indices are all set to decline, with S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.7% and 0.8%, while those for the Dow Jones are 0.4% lower.  

11.30am: Shell AGM protests

A protest has been staged at Shell PLC's (LSE:SHEL, NYSE:SHEL) headquarters in London, demanding "accountability for decades of oil pollution" in Nigeria’s Niger delta. 

Campaign groups Amnesty UK, Fossil Free London and Justice 4 Nigeria coalition have held the protest to coincide with Shell’s annual shareholder meeting, and after 13,500 residents from the region filed claims against Shell in the UK High Court.

While Shell’s AGM is held in a Heathrow hotel protected by a court injunction against environmental protesters, the groups put on a stunt they said had featured "visuals symbolising the ongoing environmental devastation Shell has caused", with campaigners pouring fake oil onto a giant map of the Niger Delta.

They say Shell’s operations in the Niger Delta have led to severe pollution of water, soil, and air, affecting the health and livelihoods of millions that the company has "failed to adequately clean up the region or compensate those affected".

Lazarus Tamana, co-founde of the Justice 4 Nigeria coalition, said: "Shell still refuses to clean up and pay up after so many years of Niger Delta people highlighting the damage Shell has caused. How is it still necessary for us to be here and call on Shell to clean up its mess? They have devastated our water, land, health and livelihoods and we continue to fight for justice.

"Shell admitted liability for their oil pollution in 2014, yet the Bodo community has had to drag Shell back to the courts here in London, just to get them to clean up. They must be held to account and compensate all affected communities."

11.09am: Spanish stocks up but mobile internet down, renewables stocks rise

Spain's Ibex index is top of the European markets this morning, despite the country being hit by another technical outage, fresh from the recent power blackout.   

Customers of all top mobile providers, including Movistar, Orange, Vodafone and O2, are reportedly unable to use their mobile data, make calls or receive texts since the outage was sparked at around 5am, according to the website DownDetector.

Problems have been reported in all major cities, with internet issues seen across the country, with the problem attributed to a glitch on the Telefónica network, the operator for most of the country's mobile networks.

Back to stock markets, the Ibex is up thanks to 5% gains for defence giant Indra, renewables generator Solaria.

Elsewhere, renewables giant Orsted is up 15% and Vestas Wind Systems 5%, which all seems to be on the back of the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management yesterday lifting a controversial stop-work order for Equinor’s Empire Wind wind project offshore New York.

Equinor reported the move late yesterday, without providing details of the agreement reached with US authorities.

Around the European indices, the FTSE and Italy's FTSE MIB are up 0.5%, while Germany's DAX and France's CAC are ahead 0.3% and 0.1% respectively. 

London-listed Diploma, up 16%, is top riser in the Euro Stoxx 600. 

10.44am: Global vacancies decline

Global white collar job vacancies fell 11.6% in April compared to March, according to new research from Robert Walters, continuing a period of fluctuating hiring activity across the globe.

Hiring for AI and data talent saw demand for roles shifts toward data engineers responsible for building infrastructure.

AI and data vacancies held steady, with machine learning postings up 27%.

Geographically, US job vacancies fell 16.2% following the implementation of trade tariffs, while the UK saw a 12% drop as national insurance increases and changes to employment rights came in. 

"While individual months have swung between sharp rises and falls, the broader trend suggests a recruitment market in flux rather than in decline," said Toby Fowlston, CEO at Robert Walters.

"The statistics point to a cautious hiring environment with pockets of strategic activity, where employers are adjusting to economic unpredictability and external pressures rather than pausing recruitment outright.”

The Robert Walters global jobs index tracks external adverts for professional roles posted online.

9.57am: Brave Sir Huw

Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill says he thinks the pace of interest rate cuts since over the past 12 months has been “too rapid given the balance of risks to price stability we face”.

At a briefing hosted by Barclays, he has given a speech discussing why he voted to leave rates unchanged at the May MPC meeting. 

He said his dissenting vote in this months's meeting reflected him "favouring a ‘skip’ in the quarterly pattern of Bank Rate cuts intended to slow the pace at which monetary restriction is withdrawn.

"It should not be seen as favouring a halt to (still less a reversal of) that withdrawal of restriction.

"I believe that the underlying disinflation process remains intact and – conditional, as always, on the information and analysis available today – that the prospective path of Bank Rate from here is downward."

He has entitled his speech 'The courage not to act'. 

9.26am: What's lifting markets?

Investors "seem keen to see the glass half full with the prospect of Ukraine peace talks, Iran nuclear deals and tariff rapprochement winning out over concerns about the US fiscal position and possible re-escalation of trade wars", says market analyst Neil Wilson at Saxo.

It’s not all "peaches and cream" on the trade war front, though, he notes, with China accused the US of undermining the Geneva consensus on chip export controls, urging correction and warning of measures if the US persists, referring to the Trump administration’s warning that using Huawei Ascend chips violate export controls. 

Susannah Streeter, markets watcher for Hargreaves Lansdown also sees renewed hopes for a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia, combined with another wave of stimulus for China’s economy, as providing the spark for markets this morning.

Following a call with Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump was bullish about negotiations for a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia starting immediately.

"The renewed rush for safe havens sparked by the US credit rating downgrade, has reversed, with gold falling back as investors have more appetite for equities," says Streeter.

"Of course, hanging on the words of unpredictable leaders isn’t solid ground, and hopes for a ceasefire have risen before, only to be dashed." 

Moscow has indicated that any progress is likely to be slow, with Putin talking about a "memorandum on a possible future peace agreement". 

If a deal is reached, Streeter says it could pave the way for sanctions relief for Russia and for its crude supplies to flow more freely into world markets, though that possibility is only pushing down the price of Brent slightly, down 0.2% to $65.3 a barrel. 

8.57am: Greggs numbers not as good as they look

Greggs shares are up 5.8% but the improved growth is only positive "on the surface", says analyst Jonathan Pritchard at Peel Hunt, as it "still implies volume declines" with the price increases pushed through back in December and other increases in recent weeks.

"This may come as a slight disappointment to the market, given weather conditions were highly favourable over the period.

"The lower-income-decile customer still seems to be the one that is struggling."

Greggs also pushed through further price increases of up to 2% over the period to offset cost-base pressures.

8.31am: Vodafone tanker still turning around

On Vodafone, market analyst Richard Hunter at Interactive Investor says: "Turning around a super tanker is never an easy task, especially when the company is in the midst of a highly competitive arena, but there are some signs that Vodafone is beginning to ring the changes."

While the group had been "fighting fires on too many fronts" while also trying to whittle down its massive debt burden, this had led to the need for a significant transformation, he adds.

"What should now emerge from the turnaround is a smaller and less geographically diverse, but more focused operation."

Selling off Italy and Spain, as well as a reduction of its stake in Vantage Towers, is reflected in cash proceeds of €13.3 billion, which has enabled net debt to be reduced from €33.2 billion to €22.4 billion, "although this remains an ominous weight on the group".

He notes that even the planned halving of the dividend payment has resulted in a yield of 7.8%, "effectively paying investors to wait as the transformation continues, although some of the elevated yield level comes from a decreasing share price."

"Unfortunately, years of underperformance weigh heavily on investors’ minds, and it will take some time for those painful memories to be erased. For all the progress, Germany continues to struggle and it will be difficult for Vodafone to reach an inflection point until the area returns to revenue growth, although the group expects that to happen over the next year."

With the shares having fallen by 72% over the last ten years and by 43% over the last five, Hunter condudes: "The strategy is clear, the transformation is in train and the valuation is undemanding, but for the moment the market consensus of the shares as a hold reflects investor reticence fully to commit just yet."

8.15am: FTSE 100 starts higher, led by Diploma

The FTSE 100 has started higher, though not as much as expected, with a gain of 18 points to 8,718.

Diploma, the engineer specialising in controls and seals, is topping the leaderboard, up 11%. It has lifted others engineers and industrials shares too.

Centrica is up 1.6% after striking a deal to sell a stake in the North Sea Cygnus gas field for £215 million. 

Vodafone is up 0.5% as its final results were broadly in line with expectations.     

7.56am: Yesterday's market moves explained 

Yesterday's reversal of the early sell-off in the London and New York was a "large round trip" in US Treasury yields, says Deutsche Bank's Jim Reid, attributing it to the news of the Moody's credit downgrade.

The 30yr yield briefly reaching its highest intraday level since 2023, at 5.035%, before paring back that move to close at 4.90%, lower on the day and virtually in line with where it was before the news late on Friday.

The recovery "perhaps indicates the slow moving trend of overseas investors selling Treasuries but domestic investors increasing their holdings", says Reid.

He notes that the US asset that struggled the most was the dollar, with the DXY index down 0.7%, only a modest recovery from its -1.02% intra-day low.

"That dollar decline repeated the early April parallels of capital flight scenarios often seen in emerging markets, where the currency struggles even though rates are going up," says Reid, adding that it comes at "a delicate time, because the US administration are seeking to pass an extension to the 2017 Trump tax cuts, which are currently due to expire at the end of 2025".

Otherwise yesterday, several Fed officials signalled they weren’t in a hurry to cut rates, he observes, while the UK-EU pact is expected by Deutsche's economists to result in long-run benefits of around 0.5% of GDP by 2040.

On today, Reid says Asia-Pacific risk sentiment has been helped by China’s central bank announcing cuts to key lending rates for the first time since October, while the Reserve Bank of Australia have just cut rates by 25bps, as expected.

In the day ahead, comments from the BoE’s chief economist Huw Pill are expected.

7.40am: Greggs goes viral 

Greggs PLC (LSE:GRG) has reported an improvement in sales growth in recent weeks.

Total sales were up 7.4% to £784 million in the first 20 weeks of 2025, with like-for-like growth of 2.9% that compares to LFL growth of 1.7% year-on-year in the first nine weeks of the year and 2.5% in the fourth quarter of last year.

The bakery chain said the improved performance in the last 11 weeks was supported by "better trading conditions" and new products.

Peach iced tea and mint lemonade were said to be popular in the hot weather of late, while pizza boxes saw strong demand and a newly launched mac & cheese "went viral on TikTok". 

7.33am:

Vodafone Group PLC (LSE:VOD) has announced a new €2 billion share buyback alongside its prelims, saying the turnaround of its business in Germany is bearing fruit and a return to growth is expected this year.

The FTSE 100-listed telecoms group reported a 2.0% increase in total revenue to €37.4 billion, as service revenue rose by 2.8% to €30.8 billion, or 5.0% on an organic basis. This was better than the 4.2% average analyst forecast.

However, underlying profit (EBITDAaL) grew 2.5% to €10.9 billion, marginally short of forecasts and guidance for a straight €11 billion. 

Guidance is for adjusted EBITDAaL of €11.0-11.3 billion and adjusted free cash flow of €2.6-2.8 billion this year.

7.14am: FTSE 100 expected to start 33 points higher 

A solid FTSE 100 open is expected on Tuesday after a turnaround at the start of the week and a similar story on Wall Street overnight. 

Futures currently have the London benchmark starting 33 points higher, following a session where the index reversed a 70-point loss to end up adding 14 points yesterday to close at just shy of 8,700. 

This mapped a similar route for US stocks last night, which all started in the red but ended higher, with the Dow Jones climbing 0.8%, the S&P 500 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite 0.4%, with only the small caps of the Russell 2000 unable to recover. 

Asian markets are mixed this morning, with the Hang Seng up 1.3% in Hong Kong, while the Nikkei is flat in Tokyo and the Sensex is down in Mumbai.  

5am: What to watch on Tuesday, 20 May

There could have been a disappointing end to the year for Vodafone Group PLC (LSE:VOD), UBS has predicted, with its European business potentially dragging on the telco’s financial performance, and struggles in Germany and disruption in the UK due to the Three deal. 

Greggs PLC (LSE:GRG) has gone ‘ex-growth’, some analysts reckon, but can the Geordie baker prove them wrong, and help its shares recover from the near-30% decline so far this year?

Further up the meat production line, Cranswick PLC (LSE:CWK) reports final results for the first time since not long after it was revealed that its giant farms have violated numerous environmental rules over several years - though that has barely tapped the brakes on the chicken producer's run up to an all-time high earlier this month. This week's new UK/EU pact should make exporting to the Continent easier too.

Announcements due:

Trading updates: Greggs, Smiths Group

Interims: Diploma, SSP, Topps Tiles

Finals: Caledonia Investments, Cranswick, LondonMetric Property, Vodafone

Overseas earnings: Home Depot, Palo Alto Networks, Amer Sports, Toll Brothers

Economic announcements: Consumer Confidence (EUR), API Oil Stocks (US)