25th Jul 2025 11:50
(Alliance News) - European equities rounded off the week mostly lower at midday on Friday, amid "fragile" UK consumer confidence and as investors look to next week's US tariff deadline.
The FTSE 100 index was down 31.92 points, 0.4%, at 9,106.45. The FTSE 250 was down 101.85 points, 0.5%, at 22,053.56, and the AIM All-Share was down 1.26 points, 0.2%, at 775.61.
The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.3% at 909.15, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.5% at 19,366.93, and the Cboe Small Companies was up 0.2% at 17,686.31.
In European equities on Friday, the CAC 40 in Paris gained 0.1%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt faded 0.6%.
"The FTSE 100 lost some ground as investors took stock after another breathless week for the markets," said AJ Bell analyst Russ Mould.
"There was positive economic news from the UK as retail sales bounced back in June helped by warm weather – although beyond the headline there were several signs that consumer confidence remains fragile.
"The next big focus for the market is whether a deal can be struck between the EU and Trump administration on trade – which would remove one of the biggest remaining uncertainties ahead of next week's tariff deadline."
Stocks in New York were called broadly flat. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was called 0.1% higher, the S&P 500 index also up 0.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite slightly lower.
The EU believes a trade deal with the US is "within reach", a European Commission spokesman said Thursday, after diplomats said the two sides appeared closer to an agreement.
"As regards a deal as an outcome, we believe such an outcome is within reach," EU trade spokesman Olof Gill said.
Diplomats this week said a US proposal with a baseline tariff rate of 15% was on the table – with carve-outs for sectors including pharmaceutical products and aircraft – but that it remained under discussion.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.42%, widening from 4.40%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.97%, stretching from 4.94%.
Brown Brothers Harriman analysts commented: "Remember, markets may soon have to contend with a "shadow" Fed chair, if President Trump signals his pick months ahead of Powell's May 2026 term end. All three leading candidates (Kevin Warsh, Kevin Hassett, Christopher Waller) to succeed Powell have argued for lower interest rates right now. Conflicting signals between the official Chair and a perceived "shadow" figure will increase market confusion, lead to mixed policy expectations, and erode the Fed's image as a non-partisan institution."
The pound was quoted at USD1.3460 at midday on Friday in London, down from USD1.3571 at the equities close on Thursday. The euro stood slightly lower at USD1.1734, against USD1.1737. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at JPY147.80 compared to JPY146.33.
Pri0r1ty Intelligence was up 19% around midday.
The London-based software-as-a-service provider focused on AI launched a lightning network routing node for bitcoin transactions, following the rollout of Pr1bit last month.
The additional paid offering, Pr1bit, uses both artificial intelligence and Coinbase Commerce infrastructure to enable businesses to accept bitcoin payments instantly and almost cost-free. Pri0r1ty customers will be able to use its lightning network to send and receive bitcoin at a "significantly lower cost" than the bitcoin main network or other online payment methods.
Pri0r1ty will earn a routing fee for processing transactions in bitcoin satoshis, which is the smallest monetary denomination of bitcoin. The first node is already active, with more than 100 payments processed to date on behalf of small to medium-sized enterprises. The company will also launch several Ethereum validator nodes and provide a staking pool.
Jupiter Fund Management was among the FTSE 250's biggest losers, down 4.9%.
The London-based active, "high conviction" asset manager reported a small rise in assets under management in the first half of 2025, though net flows remained slightly negative and profit declined. The company cut its interim dividend by more than a third.
AuM was GBP47.1 billion on June 30, up from GBP45.3 billion on December 31, though still down from GBP51.3 billion a year before. Net flows during the half year were negative GBP200 million, improved from negative GBP3.4 billion a year before.
Pretax profit for the half-year was GBP27.5 million, down from GBP38.7 million a year before, as net revenue declined to GBP153.9 million from GBP173.7 million.
Jupiter cut its interim dividend by 34% to 2.1 pence per share from 3.2p. It said this was in line with its capital allocation policy of return returning 50% of pre-performance fee EPS.
"Jupiter has delivered a strong start to 2025, with growing momentum in the first half of the year," CEO Beesley said. "Direct management actions over previous periods are driving meaningful changes, and we are beginning to see the tangible benefits come through in our results."
Lifesafe Holdings sank 19%.
The Essex, England-based fire safety technology developer said revenue for the six months to June 30 is around GBP900,000, down 44% from GBP1.6 million the year before. The firm estimated its loss before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation to have widened to around GBP700,000 from GBP400,000.
This was the result of Lifesafe's changing its sales model to a business-to-business-to-consumer model from a pure business-to-consumer model, and its consequently revised wholesale prices. In addition, unauthorised reseller competition on Amazon hurt order rates, though the company noted this has now been resolved, and GBP100,000 in orders have been delayed to the next financial period due to delivery issues within the supply chain.
Brent oil was quoted higher at USD69.31 a barrel at midday in London on Friday from USD68.24 late Thursday. Gold was quoted lower at USD3,342.57 an ounce against USD3,412.38.
Still to come on Friday's economic calendar, US durable goods orders figures.
By Emily Parsons, Alliance News reporter
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