Markets: FTSE 100 nudges up

• FTSE 100 up 0.1% to 6,199
• Gold down 2.26% to $1,220.10/oz
• £/$ 1.4117

FTSE 100

Kingfisher led the market up, climbing 5.9% after reporting a rise in profits, while housebuilder Berkeley added 2.8% and broadcaster Sky rose 2.5%.

In Europe, the Paris CAC 40 slipped 0.2% to 4,423, and the German Xetra Dax added 0.3% to 10,022.

Subscribe to MoneyWeek

Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Get 6 issues free

Sign up to Money Morning

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Sign up

In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.5% to 17,502, the S&P 500 slipped 0.6% to 2,036, and the Nasdaq Composite was 1.1% lower at 4,768.

Overnight in Japan, the Nikkei 225 lost 0.6% to 16,892, and the broader Topix index fell 0.7% to 1,354. And in China, the CSI 300 slid 1.7% to 3,181, and the Shanghai Composite was 1.6% lower at 3,098.

Brent spot was trading at $40.19 early today, and in New York, crude oil was at $39.30. Spot gold was trading at $1,217 an ounce, silver was at $15.23 and platinum was at $953.

In the forex markets this morning, sterling was trading against the US dollar at 1.4065 and against the euro at 1.2588. The dollar was trading at 0.8950 against the euro and 112.83 against the Japanese yen.

And in the UK, retailer Next announced a rise in pre-tax profits, but warned that the coming year would be the "toughest we have faced since 2008". Pre-tax profits in the year to January rose by 5% to £821.3m, but CEO Simon Woolfson said he feared there would be a "cyclical move away from spending on clothing".