Shares in retailer JD Sports suffered some nasty marks after a disappointing trading update from US footwear giant Nike.
The self-styled King of Sneakers took a hit, losing 5.4 per cent, or 6.85 pence, to 119.5 pence, as Nike warned its 2025 revenue would be lower than expected.
In an update released late Thursday, Nike said demand for its sneakers was weakening in international markets and noted that consumers were being tempted by newer brands. Nike shares fell nearly 20 percent in New York.
In its full-year results at the end of May, FTSE 100-listed JD Sports highlighted its markets were volatile and challenging as it reported a drop in profits.
The sportswear company issued a dire profit warning earlier this year, which in one day reduced its market value by more than 20 percent. JD Sports’ performance has since stabilised, until the latest drop, but overall the stock still ranked as the third biggest faller in the first half of this year, down 27 percent.
Scuff marks: The self-proclaimed Sneaker King took a beating and lost 5.4 per cent, or 6.85 pence, to 119.5 pence.
Luxury goods group Burberry was the worst performing stock in the period, down almost 37 per cent after a 2.4 per cent, or 22p, drop to 877.8p yesterday, closely followed by betting firm Entain, down 36 per cent this year despite inching up 0.7 per cent, or 4.4p, to 630p yesterday.
On the positive side, acquisitions were the two biggest gainers on the FTSE 100 in the first half, with Darktrace up 58% and Hargreaves Lansdown up 55%. Darktrace lost 0.4%, or 2p, to 576.6p, and Hargreaves Lansdown fell 0.3%, or 3.5p, to 1,132p in the last session.
Rolls-Royce (up 0.5 per cent, or 2.1 pence, to 456.8 pence yesterday) continued its brilliant recovery, rising 54 per cent in the first six months of the year, and banking giants NatWest ( which was down 0.5 per cent, or 1.5p, to 311.8p) and Barclays (down 0.4 per cent, or 0.85p, to 208.9p) also performed strongly .
In the final trading session of the first half, the FTSE 100 index fell 0.2 percent, or 15.56 points, to 8,164.12, a drop not enough to prevent it from recording a fourth consecutive quarter of gains.
For the second quarter of the year, which saw it hit record highs, the blue-chip index added 3.5 per cent, while in the first six months of 2024 it gained more than 6.2 per cent. Similarly, the FTSE 250 index posted a strong quarterly gain of 2.5 per cent, giving it a 3.1 per cent rise in the first half. But on that day, the mid-cap index lost 0.2 per cent, or 45.77 points, to 20,286.03.
The biggest faller on the FTSE 250 was Auction Technology, which lost 9.9 per cent, or 55 pence, to 501 pence, after private equity firm TA Associates offloaded a 5 per cent stake in the firm market technology through a share placement with institutional investors.
On AIM, CD and technology recycler MusicMagpie fell 13.8 per cent, or 1p, to 6.25p, hitting a record low after posting lower interim revenues and warning that business overall was tough.
But mining explorer Altona Rare Earths rose 33.3 per cent, or 0.35p, to 1.4p as it conditionally raised £390,000 by subscribing for new shares, with the net proceeds to be used at its Monte Muambe rare earths project in Mozambique.
