The FTSE 100 has made a mildly positive start, helped by gains for Barclays PLC (LSE:BARC) and Smith & Nephew PLC (LSE:SN) on the back of results.
An hour into trading, the blue chip index is 7 points higher, less than tenth of a percent, at 8,471.
Barclays PLC (LSE:BARC) reported a 19% increase in profits for the first quarter of 2025, beating City expectations thanks in part to a strong performance from its investment bank.
Smith & Nephew's shares rose over 5% after the knee and hip replacer maintained its full-year 2025 guidance after seeing growth of 3.1% in underlying revenue for the first quarter.
GSK PLC (LSE:GSK, NYSE:GSK) is also trading higher after it reported earnings ahead of expectations, and kept full year guidance intact.
On the FTSE 250, shares in Genus PLC (LSE:GNS) have surged 22% after the US Food and Drug Administration approved the company’s gene-edited pigs for use in the American food supply chain.
And Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC (LSE:AML) said it is limiting how many cars it exports to the US, its third biggest market last year, due to the impact of Donald Trump’s automotive tariffs.
