9th Oct 2026 12:20
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London were higher at midday on Friday, supported by gains for mining and tech stocks, as oil prices retreated after US President Donald Trump ruled out military strikes against Iran before the US midterm elections.
The FTSE 100 index was up 83.57 points, 0.8%, at 10,525.17. The FTSE 250 was up 297.81 points, 1.2%, at 24,241.42, and the AIM All-Share was up 5.92 points, 0.8%, at 776.59.
The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.8% at 1,043.98, the Cboe UK 250 was up 1.6% at 21,109.17, and the Cboe Small Companies was up 0.6% at 18,799.49.
In European equities on Friday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.7%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt rose 1.0%.
Brent oil traded at USD102.75 a barrel at midday Friday, down from USD105.57 late Thursday.
US President Donald Trump ruled out military strikes against Iran before the November 3 midterm elections, saying Washington was holding "productive discussions" with Tehran.
Trump's comments followed a surge in oil prices on Thursday, driven by reports suggesting the US could launch fresh strikes against Iran ahead of the elections.
In the FTSE 100, Sage Group was among the leading risers, climbing 4.4%.
Miners also advanced on higher metal prices, with Antofagasta up 3.8% and Fresnillo up 3.5%.
Telecommunications stocks were among the worst performers, with Airtel Africa falling 4.4%, Vodafone Group losing 4.1% and BT Group declining 1.9%.
Airtel Africa's decline came as its mobile money business, Airtel Mobile Commerce, began conditional dealings on the London Stock Exchange, marking the largest London flotation since 2021.
The company, which operates as Airtel Money, priced its initial public offering at 196 pence per share, giving it a market capitalisation of GBP5.3 billion.
Unconditional dealings are expected to begin on Wednesday, October 14.
In the FTSE 250, Morgan Advanced Materials jumped 9.0% after RBC upgraded the company to 'outperform' from 'sector perform' and raised its price target to 330p from 250p.
Seraphim Space Investment Trust gained 5.2% after investing in satellite navigation company Xona.
Among smaller companies, Alternative Liquidity Fund plunged 24%.
Focus Xplore surged 71% after completing its acquisition of Nova Aurum Exploration.
Oxford Metrics fell 8.5% after the motion capture technology company warned that trading since its first-half results had fallen short of expectations and lowered its financial outlook.
The company now expects revenue of GBP47 million to GBP51 million for the 15 months ending December 31, alongside an adjusted earnings before interest and tax loss of GBP500,000 to GBP3.9 million, below current market expectations.
Oxford Metrics said cost-saving and margin-improvement measures were progressing ahead of plan.
Looking ahead, it expects adjusted Ebit for financial 2027 to be at or above current market expectations, although revenue is forecast to fall short of expectations.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3237 at midday Friday, higher than USD1.3214 at the London equities close on Thursday. Against the euro, sterling rose to EUR1.1805 from EUR1.1799 a day earlier.
The euro rose to USD1.1213 at midday Friday from USD1.1198 late Thursday. Against the yen, the dollar strengthened to JPY158.31 from JPY158.26.
Meanwhile, global trade is expected to keep expanding in 2026 after a record year in 2025, although much of the increase will reflect higher prices rather than higher trade volumes, the United Nations said on Friday.
The UN Trade & Development agency, UNCTAD, expects the value of global trade in goods and services to rise by around 4% this year.
In 2025, global trade increased by 4.7% to a record USD35 trillion.
The agency said trade between China and the US had declined by more than 20% since 2024, while East Asia had expanded trade with both economies, highlighting a shift in global trading patterns.
UNCTAD expects global economic growth to slow to 2.6% this year from 2.9% in 2025.
Artificial intelligence-related products are among the main drivers of trade growth.
The agency also noted that developed economies accounted for approximately 70% of the value of foreign investment projects announced in strategic, high-value-added sectors between 2020 and 2025, including semiconductors, energy transition technologies and AI infrastructure.
Stocks in New York were called higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was called up 0.2%, the S&P 500 up 0.4% and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.8%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 5.23%, narrowing from 5.34%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 5.62%, narrowing from 5.66%.
Elsewhere, the EU's top trade official said negotiations with China must deliver "tangible outcomes" as talks between the two trading partners were set to conclude in Beijing on Friday.
The discussions follow months of rising tensions between the EU and China, raising concerns about a potential escalation into a broader trade dispute.
"Building on three intensive months of engagement, we're working hard to rebalance EU-China trade," EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic said late Thursday after meeting Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao.
"It's crucial that the first phase of our talks under the Trade and Investment Consultations delivers tangible outcomes," he added.
Sefcovic had earlier warned that the EU's trade deficit with China, running at approximately EUR1 billion a day, was "unsustainable".
Gold was quoted at USD4,182.38 an ounce at midday Friday, higher than USD4,116.87 on Thursday.
Still to come on Friday's economic calendar is Canada's unemployment rate.
In the US, the University of Michigan releases its preliminary consumer sentiment index.
By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News senior economics reporter
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