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Important information: The value of investments can go down as well as up so you may get back less than you invest. Investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. This is a third-party news feed and may not reflect Fidelity’s views.

FTSE 100 movers: Melrose rallies on outlook upgrade; Beazley slumps

(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was up 0.3% at 7,449.77 in afternoon trade on Thursday. Melrose Industries rallied after it lifted its annual outlook as it said trading has been ahead of expectations, partly due to higher-than-expected margins at the engines division.

In an update for the six months to 30 June, the company said adjusted pre-tax profit jumped to £134m from £9m in the same period a year earlier, with revenues up £1.6bn from £1.4bn.

Melrose said the aerospace business performed well during the period and that the engines division had exceeded its margin guidance "and continues to demonstrate exceptional profit growth and long-term cash flows".

On the downside, Prudential and DS Smith were both lower as they traded without entitlement to the dividend.

Paper and packaging company Smurfit Kappa fell as it confirmed it is in merger talks with US peer WestRock. No financial details were given but a report by the Wall street Journal suggested the combined group could be worth around $20bn.

Miners Anglo American, Rio Tinto and Antofagasta all lost ground after uninspiring Chinese trade data.

Insurer Beazley was in the red after saying it remains on track to hit guidance after delivering record profits in the first half, but its combined ratio jumped.

FTSE 100 - Risers

Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 222.20p 3.49% Melrose Industries (MRO) 525.80p 3.30% Relx plc (REL) 2,694.00p 2.16% Centrica (CNA) 158.80p 1.76% Mondi (MNDI) 1,315.50p 1.50% Ocado Group (OCDO) 859.00p 1.42% BAE Systems (BA.) 1,027.50p 1.33% Sage Group (SGE) 1,003.50p 1.32% DCC (CDI) (DCC) 4,344.00p 1.28% M&G (MNG) 194.20p 1.28%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Prudential (PRU) 905.20p -3.00% Anglo American (AAL) 2,026.50p -2.85% Smith (DS) (SMDS) 296.40p -2.66% Smurfit Kappa Group (CDI) (SKG) 3,134.00p -2.61% JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 135.80p -2.51% Rio Tinto (RIO) 4,862.50p -2.33% Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,461.50p -2.31% Beazley (BEZ) 531.00p -1.85% Airtel Africa (AAF) 113.70p -1.73% Glencore (GLEN) 422.40p -1.64%

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Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

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