UK Market Comments

In mid-morning trading the FTSE 100 is up 76 points, at 6539, as the BoJ treats the markets on Halloween to a boost in its stimulus package.

In London, equities surged higher on the open after a surprise expansion in the stimulus package from the Bank of Japan. The Japanese central bank has taken the QE baton from the Fed and equity traders couldn’t be happier. The ECB’s ABS purchasing scheme will kick off next month and if that isn’t enough to stimulate the struggling eurozone economy, Ewald Nowotny of the ECB stated that full-blown QE should not be ruled out. Traders have taken note of the ace up the ECB’s sleeve. Shares in the troubled lender RBS have rocketed this morning after it revealed a third consecutive quarterly profit. The bank's core capital ratio is improving, which will bode well for the rigorous BoE stress test on the horizon. The Scottish bank is standing by its Celtic cousin, Ulster bank, after a sharp improvement in Irish property prices in the past year has pushed the Dublin-headquartered bank into profit. Direct line is motoring along after the insurance company announced a 5% decline in quarterly premium sales. The growth in the commercial sector helped soften the blow from the decelerating motor business.
Meanwhile, it’s up, up and away for British Airways owner IAG as third-quarter profits soar and the full-year guidance ascends. The next destination for the airline could be dividend–island.

In the US, we are expecting the Dow to open 190 points higher at 17,385. US index futures are currently at an all-time high thanks to the Land of the Rising Sun raising its stimulus package.