FTSE 100 Live: Smiths Group Rallies on £2 Billion Sale as FTSE 100 Opens Soft; Sainsbury’s Drops

The FTSE 100 nudged 13 points lower to 9,688 at the open, reflecting ongoing caution across European markets as global sentiment attempted to stabilise.

Shares of Smiths Group jumped 2.55% to £2,492 sharply at the open after the company confirmed the sale of its airport security screening business, Smiths Detection, to CVC Capital Partners in £2 billion. 

The sale follows the recent divestment of Smiths Interconnect to Molex for £1.3 billion, and the company expects approximately £1.85 billion in net proceeds from the latest transaction.

Gainers and Losers

Endeavour Mining gained 1.57% to £3,488 as stronger bullion prices boosted the sector.

Antofagasta advanced 1.52% to £2,813, supported by firmer copper market sentiment. Berkeley Group rose 1.45% to £3,642, helped by increased expectations of interest-rate cuts.

Spirax Group added 1.21% to £6,720, reflecting improving industrial demand. GSK gained 1.15% to £1,840 as defensive healthcare names attracted renewed buying interest.

On the downside, Next declined 0.74% to £14,015. AstraZeneca slipped 0.38% to £13,748 amid volatility in pharma stocks.

Games Workshop eased 0.26% to £19,590. LSEG dipped 0.34% to £8,714 following a soft start to the broader financial sector.

British American Tobacco fell 0.55% to £4,370, weighed down by regulatory uncertainty. Unilever declined 0.45% to £4,463 on mild profit-taking.

Sainsbury’s Slips After Qatar Cuts Stake

Shares of Sainsbury's declined after the Qatar Investment Authority reduced its stake from 10.5% to below 7% through a share placing. 

Although QIA previously held as much as 25% of the supermarket chain in 2007, the sovereign wealth fund has gradually trimmed its position over the years. 

The share price fell by around 4.54% to £311.20, still it remains roughly 20% higher over the past year.

Corporate Moves and Global Signals

HSBC opened lower following the announcement that Brendan Nelson, a former KPMG partner and sitting board member, has been appointed as the bank’s new group chair after an extensive selection process. 

Spire Healthcare suffered a steep drop after warning that its 2025 earnings would likely land at the bottom of its guidance range.

Bloomsbury Publishing revealed a new collaboration with Google Cloud aimed at enhancing book discovery through AI-powered analytics, semantic search tools, and predictive inventory systems.

Also Read: Stock Market Today: Nifty at 25,909, Sensex Falls 294 Points; Wipro and TCS Lead Gainers

Global Sentiment

Asian markets saw a modest recovery after Monday’s turbulence, with the Nikkei rising 1.14% and the MSCI Asia-Pacific index holding flat. 

The rebound came as traders focused on the possibility of a US Federal Reserve rate cut next week. 

Bitcoin reclaimed the $90,000 level, gold steadied near $4,208, and Brent crude nudged upward to $62.61, contributing to a softer global backdrop.