London stocks were mostly higher by midday, with the FTSE 100 up 0.3% at 8,291.52, while the FTSE 250 dipped slightly by 0.06%, standing at 20,831.88.
Miners gave the FTSE 100 a strong boost, with Anglo American climbing 7% on the back of China’s stimulus news. 3i Group edged up by 0.3%, highlighting robust growth, particularly from its retail investment in Action. Year-to-date sales at Action hit €9.3 billion, a 21% rise over the same period last year.
AG Barr fell 3.8% despite a revenue increase of 5.2% to £221.3 million in the first half of the year, as pretax profit dropped by 10% to £24.9 million. The Scottish beverage company still raised its interim dividend by 17%.
Raspberry Pi jumped 8%, reporting a 61% revenue increase to $144.0 million. Profitability exceeded expectations, though sales volumes were slightly below projections.
Card Factory slumped by 18%, as profit for the first half dropped 43%, largely due to rising costs from wage and freight inflation. Despite this, revenue grew by 5.9%, reaching £233.8 million for the half year.
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