10th Mar 2026 17:12
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London closed in the green on Tuesday, as markets bounced back after Monday's falls while a fall in the oil price cooled concerns around inflation.
The FTSE 100 index closed up 162.72 points, 1.6%, at 10,412.24. The FTSE 250 ended up 394.15 points, 1.8%, at 22,492.27, and the AIM all-share closed up 11.94 points, 1.6%, at 778.80.
The Cboe UK 100 was up 1.4% at 1,035.41, the Cboe UK 250 was 1.5% higher at 19,773.23, and the Cboe small companies was up slightly at 17,834.82.
In European equities on Tuesday, the CAC 40 in Paris closed up 1.8%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt ended 2.4% higher.
The pound climbed to USD1.3458 on Tuesday afternoon from USD1.3396 at the equities close on Monday. The euro stood higher at USD1.1648 from USD1.1593. Against the yen, the dollar was trading lower at JPY157.56 compared to JPY158.13.
Stocks bounced back from Monday's losses after US President Donald Trump said the war with Iran would end "very soon", although he suggested it would not conclude within the next week.
"Today will be yet again, our most intense day of strikes inside Iran – the most fighters, the most bombers," Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth told a news conference on Tuesday.
As for a timeline for the war, Trump "gets to control the throttle. He's the one deciding," Hegseth said.
"It's not for me to posit whether it's the beginning, the middle or the end," the Defense secretary said.
Among the goals is destruction of Iran's navy, which has been targeted with "artillery, fighters, bombers and sea-launched missiles," General Dan Caine, the top US military officer, said alongside Hegseth on Tuesday.
Brent oil was lower at USD87.92 a barrel on Tuesday afternoon from USD100.02 late Monday, easing some of Monday's inflation concerns and bets on interest rate hikes.
Member states of the Paris-based International Energy Agency will meet later for crisis talks to assess "the current security of supply" and the potential release of emergency stocks, the body's chief said.
In a statement following a Paris meeting of G7 energy ministers on the economic fallout of the Middle East war, IEA executive director Fatih Birol said he was "in close contact" about the situation with energy ministers from key energy producers and consumers around the world.
"In oil markets, conditions have deteriorated in recent days. In addition to the challenges of transit through the Strait of Hormuz, a substantial amount of oil production has been curtailed. This is creating significant and growing risks for the market," he said.
Miners led the FTSE 100 amid broad-based gains as stocks bounced back, with Fresnillo up 8.1%, while Antofagasta gained 6.0% and Anglo American was 6.6% higher.
Oil and defence firms eased however, with BP and Shell down 2.1% and 0.8% respectively, while BAE Systems was 0.4% lower.
Stocks in New York were higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.6%, the S&P 500 index was 0.4% higher, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.7%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury slimmed to 4.11% on Tuesday from 4.13% on Monday. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury widened slightly to 4.75% from 4.74%.
Back in London, Pershing Square shares rose 5.7% after it filed for dual initial public offerings on the New York Stock Exchange, of the hedge fund and for a new fund.
The investment company said it has secured USD2.8 billion in commitments and expects to raise between USD5 billion and USD10 billion in the combined transaction.
Pershing Square is led by Bill Ackman, a hedge fund manager with a net worth of around USD9 billion, according to Forbes.
The company said shares are being offered at a public offering price of USD50.00 per share. "We currently expect to deliver to each initial investor in the PSUS IPO, for no additional consideration, 20 shares of our common stock for every 100 PSUS shares purchased in the PSUS IPO," the firm said.
Persimmon shares climbed 4.5% as analysts said its strong results show it stands "head and shoulders" above its peer group, while guidance confirms it is "doing the right things at the right time in the right places".
Jefferies analyst Glynis Johnson said a reiteration that Persimmon is on track to reach 2026 market expectations should "massively reassure in these uncertain times" and underpin confidence that the firm is "well positioned" to deliver into 2026.
The York, England-based housebuilder said underlying operating profit rose 17% to GBP472.1 million in 2025 from GBP405.2 million the year prior, driven by increased volume and a 20 basis points rise in underlying operating margin.
Underlying pretax profit increased 13% to GBP445.6 million from GBP395.1 million, ahead of Visible Alpha consensus of GBP440 million.
JPMorgan analyst Zaim Beekawa: "All in all, whilst there is a lot of uncertainty in the market at present, we would expect guidance to be taken well, particularly given commentary on build cost inflation, and with guidance implying another year of good earnings growth."
On the FTSE 250 index, Costain shares jumped 17% as it hailed "another strong performance" in 2025, with profit climbing despite a fall in revenue.
The Maidenhead, England-based construction and engineering company's pretax profit rose 32% to GBP48.2 million in 2025, from GBP36.5 million in 2024. Reported earnings per share rose 23% to 13.9p from 11.3p.
Revenue decreased 16%, however, to GBP1.05 billion from GBP1.25 billion. Costain said growth in its Natural Resources business, where revenue rose across Energy, and Defence and Nuclear Energy, was offset by declines in Transportation, which saw revenue reductions in Road and Rail. In the Rail arm's case, this was "due to the development of a revised schedule for HS2, which moved work into FY26 and future years."
Looking ahead, Costain stated: "We expect to remain highly cash generative and to deliver progress in both revenue and adjusted operating profit in FY26 with an adjusted operating margin of around 4.0% for the full year, in line with market expectations...as we invest in the business to support the attractive growth opportunities."
Rotork shares sank 13% amid a softer oil and gas outlook despite increased sales and profit in 2025.
Rotork said pretax profit rose 12% to GBP157.9 million in 2025 from GBP140.5 million the year prior.
Operating profit increased 16% to GBP157.1 million from GBP135.9 million with an operating margin of 20.2%, up from 18.0%.
Rotork Chief Executive Kiet Huynh said: "While we are mindful of the recent geopolitical uncertainty, we expect further progress on an [organic constant currency] basis for the group in 2026."
On the AIM market, Abingdon Health shares jumped 10% after it said it will start trading on the OTCQB Venture Market in the US next month.
"Being available on the OTCQB platform has the potential to increase liquidity in Abingdon Health shares on AIM by attracting a larger universe of investors," the firm said.
Gold rose to USD5,228.60 an ounce on Tuesday from USD5,104.20 at Monday's close.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Fresnillo, up 284.00p at 3,792.00p, Anglo American, up 205.00p at 3,332.00p, Antofagasta, up 219.00p at 3,881.00p, Rolls-Royce, up 72.50p at 1,311.00p, and Pershing Square, up 228.00p at 4,232.00p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were BP, down 10.45p at 499.55p, Smith & Nephew, down 20.00p at 1,232.00p, London Stock Exchange Group, down 112.00p at 8,550.00p, Compass Group, down 23.00p at 2,260.00p, and Shell, down 26.50p at 3,180.50p.
Wednesday's economic calendar has German consumer price index figures in the morning followed by the US at 1230 GMT. There will also be a US monthly budget statement in the evening.
On Wednesday's UK corporate calendar are full year results from Legal & General, Balfour Beatty and Hill & Smith, among others.
By Michael Hennessey, Alliance News reporter
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Related Shares:
FresnilloAnglo AmericanAntofagastaPershing Square HoldingsPersimmonBPShellBAE SystemsCostain GroupRotorkAbingdon Healt.Rolls-RoyceSmith & NephewLondon Stock ExchangeCompass Group