2nd Mar 2026 06:56
(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are set to open in the red on Monday, with the prices of oil and gold shooting up following the US-Israeli weekend strikes on Iran.
"The situation is...incredibly fast-moving and fluid, however at the time of writing attacks by both sides remain ongoing, with the US and Israel conducting attacks across Iran, and Iran firing missiles not only at Israel, but also various US military installations across the wider Middle East region," commented Pepperstone's Michael Brown. "By far the most important development, though, is that Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei has been killed, with President Trump noting that 'most top Iranian decision makers' have also perished."
IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open 71.4 points, 0.7%, on Monday. The index of London large-caps closed up 0.6% at 10,910.55 on Friday.
Sterling was quoted at USD1.3377 early Monday, lower than USD1.3458 at the London equities close on Friday.
The euro traded at USD1.1732 early Monday, lower than USD1.1818 late Friday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted higher at JPY156.99 versus JPY156.05.
In the US on Friday, Wall Street ended lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 1.1%, the S&P 500 down 0.4% and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.9%.
In Asia on Monday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo was down 1.6%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was up 0.5%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was down 2.0%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed marginally higher.
Gold was quoted at USD5,377.71 an ounce early Monday, higher than USD5,235.52 on Friday.
"The combination of escalating conflict and potential shifts in power dynamics has pushed the risk premium higher, with funds instinctively moving back into gold and other safe-haven assets," Pepperstone's Dilin Wu said. "Energy route risks also warrant close attention.
"While Iran has indicated no immediate intention to close the Strait of Hormuz, several oil majors and shipping companies have paused operations. Given that this strait handles roughly 30% of global seaborne oil shipments, any disruption or surge in insurance costs could tighten actual supply conditions."
Brent oil was trading at USD78.91 a barrel early Monday, higher than USD72.71 late Friday.
In Monday's corporate calendar, there are full-year results from Bunzl and Smith & Nephew.
In the economic calendar on Monday, several regions have manufacturing PMI releases, after the UK's Nationwide house price data.
By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter
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