FTSE 100 Struggles To Hold Gains; Miners, Bank Stocks Drop
(RTTNews) - After a weak start and a subsequent smart recovery, the UK stock market retreated and slipped into negative territory Friday morning, weighed down by losses in mining and financials sectors.
Worries about escalating tensions in the Middle East and a lack of positive triggers rendered the mood cautious.
Weakness in global tech stocks due to AI-driven jitters hurt as well.
Oil prices moved up sharply as Tehran launched strikes against several countries across the Gulf and wider region following a fresh wave of strikes by the U.S. against Iran amidst a row over control of the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude futures climbed to $85.88 a barrel, gaining nearly 2%, before easing slightly to $85.72 a barrel.
The benchmark FTSE 100 was down 1.11 points at 10,571.13 a little over half an hour before noon.
Severn Trent, Vodafone Group, British American Tobacco and Imperial Brands climbed 2.5%-3%.
BT Group, United Utilities, National Grid and Shell moved up 2%-2.2%. SSE, admiral Group, Experian, Tesco, LondonMetric Property, Convatec Group, BAE Systems, Aviva, Associated British Foods and Sainsbury (J) also climbed notably higher.
Burberry Group shares dropped 4.7%. The luxury fashion house's recovery continued in the second-quarter even as European & Middle East sales fell 3% amid the Iran war.
Antofagasta shed about 4.2%, while GSK, Polar Capital Technology Trust, Anglo American Plc and Scottish Mortgage drifted lower by 3%-3.5%.
AutoTrader Group, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group, Fresnillo, Metlen Energy & Metals, Rio Tinto, Standard Chartered, Marks & Spencer, Glencore and Lion Finance Group dropped by 1%-2.2%.
IEA Cuts Oil Demand Forecast; Canadian Markets Eye Recovery
Canadian Dollar Falls As Oil Prices Edge Lower
Kroger Q2 Profit Rises, Backs FY26 Adj. Earnings View, Cuts Sales Growth Forecast; Stock Drops
UK Stocks Rise On GDP Growth, Oil Price Decline
French Stocks Rise On Oil Price Drop, Middle East Concerns Persist
Indian Shares End Off Day's Lows As Oil Prices Ease
German Stocks Move Modestly Higher As Oil Prices Fall Sharply
