The FTSE 100 opened lower amid mixed global cues. The index declined 44 points to 10,623, with miners, airlines, housebuilders and banks leading the retreat.

Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz again. Oil prices jumped, and inflation fears came back with them. Brent crude rose over 6% to near $96 per barrel. WTI surged 7.49% to $90.13.

Gainers & Losers

Antofagasta dropped 4.51% to £3,780.50. Fresnillo fell 2.83% to £3,675. Endeavour Mining lost 2.47% to £4,864.

Among others, Astrazeneca declined 0.98% to £14,970, while Lion Finance dipped 1.72% to £11,400 and Games Workshop backed 0.60% to £19,920.

On the upside, BP rose 3.11% to £557.80, and Shell advanced 2.19% to £3,266, while Centrica gained 1.87% to £201.10.

Also, British American Tobacco jumped 1.84% to £4,218, while Tesco rose 1.54% to £492.65 and Imperial Brands surged 1.03% to £2,805.

UK Economy Faces Biggest Hit 

According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the UK economy is projected to take the largest hit to growth among the world’s advanced economies amid the US-Iran war. 

In its forecasts, the IMF has cut its UK growth forecast for 2026 to 0.8%, down from the 1.3% pre-war expectation.

The IMF also forecasts the UK inflation to remain above 3% in 2026, before falling back to the Bank of England’s 2% target by the end of next year. 

“Higher oil prices will likely feed into motor fuel prices in the March print, while higher gas prices will feed into inflation with a delay in July due to the energy price cap,” says B of A UK economist Sonali Punhani.

Gambling Giant, Evoke to be Acquired by Bally’s

Evoke, the parent company of William Hill, stated that it is in talks with US casino giant Bally’s about being bought out.

Evoke has been struggling with a £1.8 billion debt. It said on Monday that the bid was priced at £50 per share and is “expected to comprise an all-share combination with a partial cash alternative.” 

Its market value has fallen by about a fifth in the last year to £175 million, with its shares closing at £39 on Friday as bid rumours lifted the stock by over nine per cent. Evoke’s board is “evaluating” the offer.

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Global Market View 

On Friday, US stocks closed strongly, with the Dow Jones jumped 1.8%, the S&P 500 climbed 1.2%, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.5%.

In Asia, South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.44% while the small-cap Kosdaq advanced 0.41%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.60% to 58,824.89, while the Topix gained 0.43% to 3,777.02. 

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was little changed at 8,953.30. Mainland China’s CSI 300 index added 0.61% at 4,757.44, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was 0.77% higher. India’s Nifty 50 and Sensex both rose 0.15% and 0.18%, respectively.