FTSE latest: Move over Tesla - little-known steam engineer tops the FTSE leaderboard

Talk about tech valuations or commodity supercycles was put to one side today as a century-old engineering company roared to the top of the FTSE 100 risers board.

Cheltenham-based Spirax-Sarco is one of those blue-chips you rarely hear about, even though the thermal energy management and niche pumping specialist is now worth £8 billion and employs 7,800 people in 130 countries.

Founded in 1888 and famed for its role in supporting the World War Two effort, the company listed on London stock market in 1959 and became large enough for a place in the FTSE 100 index in 2018.

Its shares jumped 3% today, up 355p to 11,375p, after overcoming a challenging year to post a 1% rise in 2020 profits to £240.1 million. It also increased its dividend by 7% to 118p a share and said it was well-placed for this year as industrial production recovers.

Fluid technology business Watson-Marlow was the stand-out performer in the results after Covid-19 vaccine developments boosted demand in the pharmaceuticals sector.

The wider FTSE 100 index was 2.9 points higher at 6,733.1 as this week's rebound in sentiment towards Wall Street tech stocks continued to benefit the likes of London-listed Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust and cyber security firm Avast. The flight from commodity stocks continued, however, with Rio Tinto and BHP both more than 2% lower.

The FTSE 250 index was 2.55 points higher at 21,385.61, led by a 7% rise for wealth manager Quilter after reporting pre-tax profits of £168 million for 2020.

ITV shares were being closely watched after Piers Morgan's departure as co-host of Good Morning Britain in the wake of his comments about the Meghan Markle interview. The stock yesterday rose 4% or 5p following the company's upbeat comments on the 2021 outlook, only to retreat by the same amount to 121.65p in trading today.

Markets.com analyst Neil Wilson speculated whether investors may be worried about the potential loss of ratings at Good Morning Britain following Morgan's departure.

Among the FTSE 250 companies reporting today, road safety barriers firm Hill & Smith rose 14p to 1,336p after its 43% fall in 2020 profits was offset by expectations for a “good recovery” in trading this year.