Invezz.com – The FTSE 100 is trading lower today after the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said consumer prices rose more than expected in March.
UK inflation data came out hot today / hour 2
On a yearly basis, UK inflation remained at 10.1% last month, down from 10.4% in February but higher than the 9.8% expected by economists. The National Statistical Office report states:
The largest upward contributions to the annual IPCH inflation rate in March 2023 came from housing, household services (mainly electricity, gas and other fuels), and food and non-alcoholic beverages.
For the month, CPI rose 0.8% vs. 0.5% expected. In February, gains were recorded on a monthly basis of 1.1%.
Excluding food, energy, alcohol and tobacco, the so-called baseline CPI was unchanged from February at 5.7%. The blue-chip index is currently up more than 4.0% over the year.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) is optimistic about whitcool (LON: WTB) / hour 2
Despite today’s UK inflation data, Morgan Stanley analysts remain bullish on London-listed hotel and restaurant company Whitbread plc (LON: WTB).
They’re convinced the Dunstable-based company will report better-than-expected full-year pre-tax earnings on April 25th. His research note on Wednesday added:
Whitbread’s asset backing provides a good hedge against inflation, and shares are traded at current property valuation, allowing free trading. We expect a cash return and see the FY ’23 results as the main catalyst going forward.
UK stocks are currently paying a dividend of 1.89% which makes up for another good reason to own them.
Post Analyst: Buy Whitbread shares despite UK inflation data which first appeared on Invezz today.
This article was originally published by Invezz.com
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