MARKET REPORT

BRITAIN’S financial markets were in a calmer mood yesterday at the end of a dramatic week, with both the pound and the FTSE 100 only making small movements.

Sterling was 0.2% lower against the dollar at 1.230 and 0.24% down on the euro at 1.114.

It comes at the end of a week when the currency hit its lowest level against the dollar since 1985, but subsequently recovered as the actions of MPs and the loss of the Government’s majority made a no-deal Brexit appear less likely.

David Cheetham, chief market analyst at XTB, said: “Prolonged periods of uncertainty is typically associated with weakness in a currency, but the pound has responded positively to the latest developments as the fading prospects of a no-deal have attracted buyers back into the market.”

The FTSE 100 meanwhile was recovering from a rough couple of days, in which the index had been held back by the pound’s rising value.

It gained 11.17 points on Friday, up 0.15%, to close at 7,282.34.

The German Dax was up 0.54% and the French Cac rose 0.19%.

The subdued mood also extended to the oil markets, where prices were still inching up on positive sentiment around US-China relations, but failed to match Thursday’s rally. A barrel of Brent crude oil was trading at 61.04 US dollars, up 0.53%.

In company news, pub group and brewer

said it has seen like-forlike sales dip in the first quarter on the back of plummeting beer sales, ahead of its £2.7 billion takeover.

Its shares ticked up 1.2p to close at 842p. Housebuilder

said market conditions in London and the South East were “robust” in the first quarter but it warned Brexit concerns and high transaction costs “constrained” the wider housing market.

Shares in the company were up 107p to 3,980p.

shares moved 2p higher to 1,488p after the FTSE 250 engineering firm secured a £100m order on an Australian iron ore project.

announced its Smiths News business has confirmed a deal to distribute The Daily Telegraph and its Sunday sister paper. Shares were down 0.5p to 38.5p.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were up 86p to

up 2,608p,

107p to 3,980p, up 114p to 4,808p up 18.4p to and 782.8p.