Investing.com - U.K. stock markets edged higher Tuesday, as investors digested weak employment as well as more corporate earnings, particularly from telecoms giant Vodafone (LON:VOD).
At 08:45 GMT (04:45 ET), the benchmark FTSE 100 index traded 0.2% higher, the mid-cap FTSE 250 climbed 0.2%, and the combined FTSE 350 rose 0.2%.
Data released earlier Tuesday showed that the U.K. unemployment rate unexpectedly rose to 3.9% in the three months to March, compared to the previous month’s 3.8%.
The U.K. labor market has held up surprisingly well to the Bank of England’s prolonged monetary tightening cycle, and this level is still low by historical standards. But signs of weakness here could pressure the central bank to hold back on further interest rate hikes.
That said, the pace of growth in pay remained strong and the BoE has previously expressed concerns over big, inflation-fuelling wage rises.
It’s also been a busy morning for U.K. corporate earnings, with Vodafone taking on the lead role.
Margherita Della Valle, the telecoms giant’s new CEO, announced plans to cut 11,000 jobs over three years, the biggest reduction in its history, while forecasting a €1.5 billion (€1 = $1.0890) drop in free cash flow this year.
"Our performance has not been good enough," said Della Valle, who was appointed permanently as CEO last month, as Vodafone stock fell 3.5%.
Boohoo Group (LON:BOOH) stock rose over 12% after the fast-fashion retailer reported a surprisingly healthy net cash position of £6 million (£1 = $1.2525), even after reporting a pretax net loss for 2023 as revenue declined due to lower sales, higher freight, and logistics costs.
"Our confidence in the medium-term prospects for the group remain unchanged, and as we execute on our key priorities we see a clear path to improved profitability and getting back to double-digit revenue growth," said CEO John Lyttle.
Imperial Brands (LON:IMB) stock fell 0.6% after the tobacco company reported a drop in sales volumes as consumers returned to pre-COVID buying patterns and after leaving the Russian market, with its rise in first-half profit based on price hikes.
Greggs (LON:GRG) stock fell 3% despite the baker reporting strong underlying sales of over 15% in the 10 weeks to May 13 as investors took profits after share price gains of around 27% over the last six months, outperforming the mid-cap index.
In political news, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is set to join other European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, at the two-day Council of Europe meeting in Reykjavík later Tuesday, at which more support for Ukraine is sure to be discussed.
Sunak pledged the delivery of more weapons when he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at Chequers, the prime minister’s country retreat, on Monday.