UK equities opened higher on Wednesday, supported by a busy corporate earnings schedule led by HSBC, helping markets recover from recent declines linked to geopolitical tensions and concerns surrounding artificial intelligence.
At 08:36 GMT, the FTSE 100 reached a fresh record, climbing 0.7% to 10,760.70, while sterling strengthened, with GBP/USD rising 0.2% to 1.3520 against the dollar. Elsewhere in Europe, Germany’s DAX added 0.07% and France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.3%.
UK market roundup
HSBC Holdings (LSE:HSBA) reported full-year pretax profit of $29.91 billion, surpassing analyst expectations of $28.86 billion, although down from $32.38 billion recorded in 2024. Shares rose 5.8% in early London trading.
The Asia-focused lender’s year-on-year decline reflected $4.9 billion in notable items, including impairments linked to its Bank of Communications stake and restructuring costs. Excluding these factors, pretax profit increased to $36.62 billion from $34.18 billion. HSBC also issued a 2026 net interest income target above analyst forecasts, lifting its Hong Kong-listed shares by more than 2%.
Aston Martin (LSE:AML) reported a 21% drop in revenue to £1.26 billion in 2025, while wholesale volumes declined 10% to 5,448 vehicles. Gross profit fell 37% to £369.8 million, with gross margin narrowing to 29.4% from 36.9% in 2024. The luxury carmaker posted an adjusted EBIT loss of £189.2 million, widening from a £82.8 million loss the previous year, as lower volumes, fewer high-margin Special models and tariff pressures weighed on performance. Management outlined plans for a recovery in 2026.
Haleon (LSE:HLN) shares dropped more than 4% in early trading after the consumer health company reported fourth-quarter organic sales growth of 2.1%, missing consensus forecasts of 3.5%. Volumes declined 0.3% versus expectations for growth of about 1%, while pricing increased 2.4%, broadly in line with estimates.
St. James’s Place (LSE:STJ) posted an underlying cash result of £462.3 million for 2025, up 3% year on year and 4% above consensus expectations. Underlying cash earnings per share rose 6% to 87.0 pence, while revenue climbed 19% to £3.77 billion. Funds under management reached a record £220.0 billion, up 16%, and the wealth manager announced an accelerated increase in shareholder distributions, sending shares up around 4%.
Hiscox (LSE:HSX) reported full-year earnings per share 7.5% above company-compiled consensus and unveiled a $300 million share buyback programme, exceeding market expectations by 43% compared with the $210 million consensus estimate. The insurer’s retail division delivered insurance contract written premium growth of 6.3% for the full year, accelerating from 6.1% growth recorded during the first nine months. Fourth-quarter retail premiums rose 10.0%.
Diageo (LSE:DGE) reported a 2.8% decline in organic revenue and earnings before interest and taxes for the first half of fiscal 2026. Organic revenue and EBIT both fell 2.8%, compared with consensus forecasts for a 2.0% revenue decline and a 3.9% EBIT drop. Earnings per share reached 95.3 cents, ahead of the 93.1-cent consensus estimate, while the company also announced a dividend reduction.
Jet2 (LSE:JET2) said earnings for the financial year ending March 2026 are expected to match analyst consensus forecasts of £439 million. The airline indicated that summer 2026 EBIT will remain broadly flat year on year before accounting for £40 million to £50 million of investment linked to its new Gatwick base, implying EBIT of roughly £400 million for fiscal 2027.
Bookings for summer 2027 increased 7.9%, broadly in line with capacity growth of 8.0%. The expansion includes 2.0% underlying growth, with 1.1 million additional seats from new bases and a further 0.4 million seats added across established operations.
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