FTSE Completes A Hatrick Of Weekly Declines 

The FTSE 100 initially rose 0.6% on Friday, driven by weaker-than-expected retail sales data putting pressure on the pound. This raised expectations of a potential interest rate cut by the Bank of England. Retail sales in December saw the biggest drop in almost three years, with a 3.2% shrink in sales volumes between December and November, indicating a potential recession in the fourth quarter. However, as has been the pattern so far this year early gains have faded as we close out the week as the blue chip index looks set to post its third week of declines.

On the positive side of the ledger Flutter, a major betting company sits at the top of the blue chip index gaining over 3% on the session. The company reported a loss in American football in November but still managed to increase revenue by over 25% in the last quarter of 2023. The company met expectations in markets outside the US, but suffered losses from National Football League (NFL) games, impacting its overall financial performance. Flutter reported that the "customer friendly" sports results in the fourth quarter of the year caused a revenue decrease of 343 million dollars (£270 million). However, this impact was partly offset by improved margins. Consequently, US net revenue fell significantly below earlier expectations. Despite this, the overall revenue grew by 26% during the period, with the US business also achieving nearly a fifth growth. Total revenue increased by 24% across the year, with the US business growing by 38% to £3.60 billion. In the UK and Ireland, revenue rose by 15% to £2.46 billion. The Australian business, which is smaller than the UK business, was the only part that shrank during the year.

On the negative side of the ledger Ocado retains the bottom spot of the table today shedding over 3.4%, the British online supermarket, is currently operating at approximately 75% of its capacity and does not anticipate opening any new robotic warehouses in the UK for the next two to three years, according to its CEO. The joint venture between Ocado Group and Marks & Spencer faced capacity challenges during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic but now has surplus capacity, which is posing a short-term cost to the business.

FTSE Bias: Bullish Above Bearish below 7500

• Below 7375 opens 7320

• Primary support at 7382

• Primary objective 7827

• 20 Day VWAP bearish 5 Day VWAP bearish

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