Lloyds, Taylor Wimpey and Harvey Nash

“The FTSE100 opened on the back foot following overnight softness on Wall Street and in Asia as markets doubted whether US President Donald Trump would get his tax reforms, including paring of the corporate rate, past Congress,” says AJ Bell Investment Director Russ Mould.

“Lloyds was one of the biggest blue-chip risers in early trading after a strong first quarter. The bank’s underlying profits beat forecasts by rising 1% to £2.1bn with its emphasis on simple and low risk business proving an effective counter to challenging conditions. The group’s shares were up by more than 3.1%.

“Taylor Wimpey has made a good start to the year and remains optimistic as the housing market continues to be underpinned by good mortgage availability and healthy employment prospects. The total order book value has increased by 2% to around £2.2bn and the outlook is positive.

“Recruitment group Harvey Nash was an early riser after full-year revenues increased by 16% in the year to the end of January. The group delivered a strong performance despite a challenging economic backdrop in some its markets, not least the UK, and it has started the current year marginally ahead of forecasts. Harvey Nash’s shares were up by over 4.3%.”

These articles are for information purposes only and are not a personal recommendation or advice.