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The FTSE 100 opened 39 points down at 10,339.93 ahead of the weekend. The decline comes amid elevated oil prices and mixed global cues. Brent Crude trades at $111.4 with an increase of 0.90%, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) stands at $105.63.
Pearson rose 5.92% to £1,145.50, while Unilever advanced 1.42% to £4,358 and Diageo gained 1.33% to £1,490.60.
Melrose Industries also climbed 1.14% to £487, while DCC added 1.08% to £5,600 and Informa edged up 1.01% to £800.60.
On the downside, Endeavour Mining declined 4.58% to £4,212, while Fresnillo fell 3.31% to £3,128 and AstraZeneca dropped 1.84% to £13,692.
Among others, Lion Finance slipped 1.54% to £10,870, while Spirax Group declined 1.48% to £7,062 and Next eased 1.39% to £12,765.
Diageo’s shares jumped 1.7% to 1,494, though the stock remains down 7% year-to-date. The US President framed the announcement as a personal gift to King Charles, who visited Washington this week.
Trump said, “In honor of the King and Queen of the United Kingdom, who have just left the White House, soon headed back to their wonderful Country, I will be removing the Tariffs and Restrictions on Whiskey having to do with Scotland’s ability to work with the Commonwealth of Kentucky on Whiskey and Bourbon. “The King and Queen got me to do something nobody else was able to do, without hardly even asking!”
NatWest exceeded profit expectations in Q1 2026 and forecast a bump to its bottom line on the back of higher-than-expected interest rates.
The company reported a £2 billion pre-tax profit in the first three months of the year, up from £1.8 billion in the same period last year.
The total income increased to £4.4 billion, marking a near 10% increase on the previous year.
House prices jumped in April, annual house price in the UK climbed to 3% last month, up from 2.2% in March. National house prices grew by 0.4% month-on-month, according to Nationwide’s house price index.
Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist, said Britain’s housing market has managed to gain momentum despite fears of high mortgage rates, buoyed by the “relative strength” of household finances.
“Looking ahead, UK economic growth is likely to be somewhat weaker and inflation higher than previously expected as a result of developments in the Middle East,” he said.
Also Read: Stock Market Today: Oil Prices Cross $110, FIIs Continue Selling
In the US, since 2020, yesterday’s close marked the end of the best month for US stocks, with gains driven by economic data and Big Tech earnings.
The S&P 500 gained 1%, the Nasdaq was up 0.9%, and the Dow Jones added 1.6%, led by Caterpillar, which beat estimates with a 22% rise in Q1 revenue.
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