Key Points
- FTSE 100 closing price of 7388.78 (+0.2%)
- Reckitt Benckiser to sell E45
- FX markets quiet
- Brent futures edge lower
- Cryptocurrencies rally, Bitcoin above $50K
By Samuel Indyk
Investing.com – The FTSE 100 edged higher in quiet trade ahead of an extended break for the Christmas holiday as it topped 7,400 for the first time since 12th November. The blue-chip index reached its highest level since February 2020.
Reckitt Benckiser (LON:RKT) was in focus after the consumer good company agreed to sell its E45 brand of skincare products to Karo Pharma for £200 million.
“As we shift from a brand-led to a category-led growth strategy, we are focusing on high growth categories with brands we can stretch into new places and spaces to support our medium-term growth ambitions, including 4-6% growth in Health,” Reckitt CEO Laxman Narasimhan said in a statement to the London Stock Exchange. “Now is the right time to pass E45 on to a new owner, and we are confident that Karo will build on the strength of the E45 brand to capture the significant opportunities ahead.”
FX markets were particularly quiet heading towards Christmas with GBP/USD trading in a range of less than 30 pips, but still holding above 1.3400.
The range in EUR/GBP was even narrower as the cross traded around 0.8450.
Brent Oil Futures edged lower after three days of gains took the oil benchmark back above $76.00 per barrel. Volumes were noticeably light which may have helped exacerbate the moves on Friday.
Finally, cryptocurrencies look set to end the week on the front foot with Bitcoin trading back above $50,000 and its 21-day moving average.
Ethereum, the second largest cryptocurrency by market cap, rose above $4,000.
For those celebrating, Investing.com UK wishes you all a very Merry Christmas!
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