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The FTSE 100 traded 10.68 points higher at 10,701.5 in early trade as investors welcomed narrowing US Treasury yields while assessing developments in the Middle East. Brent crude futures fell 1.26% to USD 115.3 per barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) declined 1.72% to USD 101.5 per barrel.
Sterling traded at USD 1.3375 early on Monday. This was marginally lower than USD 1.3376 when the London equities closed on Friday. Against the euro, sterling fell to EUR 1.1916 from EUR 1.1946 the previous day.
The US 10-year Treasury stood at 4.97%, falling from 5.02%, as prices climbed. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury fell to 5.30% from 5.33%.
On the upside, Computacenter surged 6.32% to 4,880.00p, while Fresnillo gained 2.73% to 2,372.00p. IG Group Holdings advanced 2.46% to 959.50p, and 3i Group climbed 1.99% to 2,357.00p. Antofagasta increased 1.64% to 3,098.00p, while Barclays added 1.51% to 413.15p.
On the downside, Experian declined 1.74% to 3,054.00p, while Smith & Nephew slipped 1.60% to 1,134.50p. Ithaca Energy fell 1.40% to 296.60p, and Diageo dropped 1.12% to 1,770.50p. SSE decreased 1.11% to 2,494.00p, while Sage Group lost 1.05% to 1,174.50p.
UK Chancellor John Healey is preparing to announce GBP 20.4 billion in additional funding for the National Wealth Fund and British Business Bank in Wednesday's government budget, the Financial Times reported.
The funding, spread over roughly five years, is expected to create and support 100,000 jobs in sectors including artificial intelligence, defence and green energy by 2035, according to the Treasury.
Airtel Money returned some 81% of its net profit to shareholders in its first financial update since its IPO just weeks ago. The firm had a 34% rise in half-year revenue to USD 830 million, on track to hit its target of mid-20% revenue growth.
Revenue was driven higher by growth across the firm’s portfolio, with financial services leading at 44.8%, followed by payments and transfers at 29.4% and wallets and services at 27.6%.
Plus500 said it expects its financial performance to increase ahead of market expectations for the full year after a boost in the third quarter. The firm’s revenue rose 11% in the last three months to USD 203.2 million after new customer sign-ups surged.
Its non-OTC business, which includes futures and physical share dealing, now accounts for some 16% of group revenue. Plus500 is gearing up to launch a super-app in the US in the first quarter of 2027 that will offer a “holistic trading experience”.
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In the US, the S&P 500 futures were up 0.25% while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures added 155 points, or 0.31%. NASDAQ-100 futures gained 0.29%.
In Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 fell 0.8% to 62,189.65, while China’s Shanghai Composite edged up by 0.19%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 0.54%, and South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.46%. In India, both the Nifty 50 and the Sensex advanced by 0.03% and 0.27%, respectively.
