Upbeat earnings push FTSE to near seven-week highs

By Sudip Kar-Gupta

LONDON (Reuters) - A wave of upbeat corporate earnings pushed the FTSE 100 back towards seven-week highs on Wednesday, with some traders betting on more near-term gains for the market.

The FTSE 100 index was up by 0.7 percent, or 44.94 points, at 6,642.38 points in early session trading - pushing it towards its highest level since around late May.

European equity markets received a further boost from data showing the private sector in Germany - the euro zone's economic powerhouse - expanded for a third consecutive month in July.

Budget airline easyJet topped the FTSE 100's leaderboard with a 5.9 percent rise on stronger-than-expected profit guidance, and chip designer ARM rose 1.9 percent after forecast-beating profits.

Traders also pointed to forecast-beating iPhone sales from Apple overnight, which ARM supplies with chips, as further lifting the tech sector.

Securequity sales trader Jawaid Afsar said investors were prepared to overlook fresh signs of Wednesday of a manufacturing slowdown in China, the world's second-biggest economy, to focus on the wave of reassuring corporate results.

"We've had good numbers from Apple, easyJet and ARM. People are still more on the side of being bullish. I still favour the upside," he said.

Afsar and EGR Broking's managing director Kyri Kangellaris said they would look to see if the FTSE 100 could rise beyond its 2013 peak of 6,875.62 points hit in May to gauge the strength and momentum of the rally so far in July.

"Topping out around 6,750 points could mark the extent of this move up," said Afsar.

The FTSE 100 fell back in June due to expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve would gradually scale back economic stimulus measures that had driven much of the equity rally.

The FTSE is up around 13 percent since the start of 2013 but some 3 percent below the May peak. "I'm still uncertain over the momentum behind this rally," said Kangellaris.

(Editing by John Stonestreet)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/arm-leads-ftse-100-index-higher-071544508.html

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