Ten in a row. The Nasdaq 100 last night notched up a tenth consecutive daily gain, its longest winning run since 2021. The tech-heavy index remains one of the clearest gauges of investors' willingness to embrace risk. Losses linked to the war in Iran have now been fully recouped. The damage caused by the broader AI scare hanging over software companies is still there, but the Nasdaq 100's return for 2026 moved back into positive territory this week, at +2.35%. That is a striking signal of how market sentiment has shifted. "Mr Market says the war is over," strategist Ed Yardeni wrote overnight. That looks very much like an epilogue, even though the Strait of Hormuz remains closed to global oil shipments. Still, the prospect of renewed talks between Iran and the United States, confirmed by Donald Trump, has been enough to calm nerves, drive US light crude WTI down to USD 90 a barrel, and restore the more familiar gap with North Sea Brent, which is still hovering around USD 95.

Those are still lofty levels, but in the stockmarket, as so often, momentum matters more than the static picture. Confidence was also buoyed yesterday by an unexpected US producer price reading for March. Prices did pick up, but far less sharply than feared. That has strengthened the hand of those who believe the inflation problem may unwind more quickly than expected.

Tensions and anxieties have not disappeared, but they are being outweighed by the fear of missing the rebound that typically marks the end of a crisis. Bank of America came up with a neatly paradoxical way of describing the mood: the market is "long and bearish", meaning investors are still buying even as they remain mentally cautious.

It was against that constructive backdrop that the first major quarterly results began to come through. US financial stocks delivered. In Europe, LVMH's numbers were underwhelming rather than alarming. The French luxury group no longer carries the same signalling power for the Paris market as it once did: the end of the sector's golden spell has made the stock feel rather less exceptional. The show goes on today with Europe's closest thing to a Nasdaq stock, ASML, alongside the fortress-like Hermès and a clutch of US banks, including Morgan Stanley and Bank of America.

Across Asia-Pacific, markets are broadly in the green. Japan and Hong Kong are up 0.4%, while South Korea, characteristically, is pushing further ahead with a 1.8% gain. Australia, with more mines than chipmakers, remains flat.

Today's economic highlights:

On the agenda today: industrial production in the Euro Area; In the United States, the MBA 30-Year Mortgage Rate, export and import prices, the NY Empire State Manufacturing Index, the NAHB Housing Market Index, EIA gasoline and crude oil stocks changes, net long-term TIC flows, along with speeches from Fed's Barr and Bowman; In the United Kingdom, a speech from BoE Governor Bailey; In the Euro Area, a speech from ECB President Lagarde. See the full calendar here.

  • GBP / USD: US$1.36
  • Gold: US$4,816.93
  • Crude Oil (BRENT): US$95.12
  • United States 10 years: 4.25%
  • BITCOIN: US$69,908.7

In corporate news:

  • GSK Concludes $950 Million Acquisition of Canada's 35Pharma
  • Hermès saw its organic growth slow to 5.6% in Q1.
  • ASML posts improved results for Q1.
  • UniCredit is reportedly considering dropping its appeal in the Banco BPM Golden Power case because new state clarifications suggest the bank itself was not deemed a national security risk and the original deal is no longer active.
  • CVC Capital Partners is assembling banks and potential equity partners for a possible EUR10.9 billion bid for Recordati that could lead to the drugmaker’s delisting.
  • KME Group said the sale of Culti Milano is scheduled to be completed on April 22, 2026.
  • KKCG Maritime ended its tender offer for Ferretti below target but will still raise its stake in the yacht maker to about 23.25% after buying all tendered shares.
  • Cosmo has achieved positive results in a Phase III trial with clascoterone for the treatment of male pattern baldness and plans to submit marketing authorisation applications in the US and Europe.
  • Aixtron has raised its annual forecast for 2026 due to strong demand in optoelectronics, but reported a decline in revenue in the first quarter.
  • Helvetia Baloise reports a business volume of CHF 19.8 billion for 2025 and plans a return on equity of 16 to 18 per cent by 2028.
  • OpenAI unveiled GPT-5.4-Cyber, a cybersecurity-focused version of its flagship model that will first be released to vetted defenders, vendors and researchers.
  • Denso formed a strategic partnership with Oracle to modernize its core supply chain systems.
  • Amazon agreed to acquire Globalstar for about $11.5 billion to strengthen its satellite ambitions and add direct-to-device connectivity capabilities in its challenge to Starlink.
  • Google was sued by rival app store Aptoide, which alleges the company illegally monopolizes Android app distribution and billing in violation of U.S. antitrust law.

See more news from UK listed companies here

Analyst Recommendations:

  • Entain Plc: Peel Hunt upgrades to buy from add and reduces the target price from GBP 8.50 to GBP 7.50.
  • Hiscox Ltd: Barclays maintains its overweight recommendation and reduces the target price from GBP 17.50 to GBP 17.30.
  • Lancashire Holdings Limited: Barclays maintains its equalweight recommendation and reduces the target price from GBP 5.90 to GBP 5.70.
  • Conduit Holdings Limited: Barclays maintains its underweight recommendation and raises the target price from GBP 3.40 to GBP 3.50.
  • Imperial Brands Plc: UBS downgrades to neutral from buy and reduces the target price from GBX 3500 to GBX 3150.
  • Wizz Air Holdings Plc: JP Morgan maintains its neutral recommendation and reduces the target price from GBP 12 to GBP 11.
  • Easyjet Plc: JP Morgan maintains its underweight recommendation and reduces the target price from GBP 4 to GBP 3.50.
  • Jet2 Plc: JP Morgan maintains its neutral recommendation and reduces the target price from GBP 14 to GBP 13.
  • Quilter Plc: Jefferies maintains its buy recommendation and reduces the target price from GBX 250 to GBX 220.
  • Diageo Plc: Goldman Sachs maintains its neutral recommendation and reduces the target price from USD 109 to USD 98.
  • Unite Group Plc: Goldman Sachs maintains its buy recommendation and reduces the target price from GBX 620 to GBX 560.
  • Rio Tinto Plc: Deutsche Bank maintains its hold recommendation and raises the target price from GBX 6200 to GBX 6900.