17th Jun 2025 12:03
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London were lower at midday on Tuesday, while oil prices continued to rise with the Israel-Iran conflict still weighing on market sentiment.
The FTSE 100 index was down 41.02 points, 0.5%, at 8,834.20. The FTSE 250 was down 61.70 points, 0.3%, at 21,222.32, and the AIM All-Share was down 1.22 points, 0.2%, at 762.92.
The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.5% at 880.25, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.1% at 18,768.52, and the Cboe Small Companies was down 0.6% at 17,009.14.
The Republic of Ireland's trade surplus jumped sharply on-year in April, boosted by pharmaceutical sales, data published by the Central Statistics Office showed.
The country's trade surplus rose 29% to EUR11.11 billion in April from EUR8.64 billion a year prior.
Notably, Ireland's trade surplus with the US surged 79% on-year to EUR8.53 billion in April from EUR4.77 billion.
Compared to March 2025, Ireland's trade surplus with the US fell by 64% from EUR23.93 billion, when it had multiplied from a surplus of just EUR3.08 billion in March 2024.
US President Donald Trump had unveiled sweeping tariffs on most trading partners on April 2, with a baseline 10%.
On the FTSE 100 in London, BP and Shell continued to lead the index, up 1.7% and 1.2% respectively.
"BP and Shell were among the rare risers as oil prices held firm after a recent rally," AJ Bell's Russ Mould said. "Middle East tensions are showing no signs of easing back, putting investors on high alert."
Brent oil was quoted higher at USD74.50 a barrel at midday in London on Tuesday from USD72.79 late Monday.
SPI's Stephen Innes noted that "oil perked up after President Trump dropped a geopolitical haymaker, urging the evacuation of Tehran. That hit the risk tape like a rogue wave, especially given earlier optimism that Israel-Iran crossfire would stay theatre-bound".
Ashtead Group was trading 0.6% lower.
The London-based industrial equipment hire company reported full-year pretax profit falling 5.2% to USD2.00 billion, while revenue decreased 0.6% to USD10.79 billion.
Ashtead declared a final dividend of 72.0 US cents, down from 89.25 cents a year ago, but making the total payout 2.9% higher on-year at 108.0 cents.
"The company is on track to complete its switch to the US in the first quarter of 2026 where it will hope to be rewarded with a more generous valuation," AJ Bell's Mould said. "The backdrop may prove an obstacle to this aspiration with the company's conservative guidance reflecting a tricky US commercial construction market which is being affected by supply chain challenges and continuing high interest rates.
"With its North American operations accounting for the lion's share of revenue and a move across the Atlantic imminent, the spotlight may fall on the position of the UK operations within the group. These could be sold off to generate capital to invest in boosting its footprint in the US and Canada."
Smaller-cap Warpaint lost 9.3%.
The Buckinghamshire, England-based cosmetics company said it expects to report sales between GBP50 million and GBP52 million for the first half of 2025, up at least 8.9% from GBP45.9 million a year prior.
"The group's revenue in Q2 has, as expected, been impacted by a slowdown in its US business, which remains a modest proportion of group sales," Warpaint added. Also, it expects full-year sales to be even more "heavily second half weighted" than in former years.
Mould commented: "The lipstick effect, the idea that people will still splash out on small indulgences like their favourite make-up in tough times, has not been much in evidence for Warpaint in 2025.
"The company has been buffeted by tariff headwinds and broader consumer uncertainty, with the glow-up in the company's share price since 2022 leaving it vulnerable to even minor blemishes in its trading...Investors can take some comfort from the fact sales are being completed at a materially higher margin than in its previous financial year."
In other domestic news, work to get US tariffs on UK steel removed will go on in the coming "days, weeks and months", UK Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has said, after a trade deal was finalised that left the future of those levies up in the air.
The Chinese ownership of British Steel could be a sticking point, as the executive order signed by Trump suggests the US wants assurances that the metal originates in the UK.
In April, the UK government used emergency powers to take control of British Steel and continue production at the site. But its future is still uncertain, with Alexander saying the government is eager for it to be "part of a commercially-operated business with private investment".
"We're talking to a number of third parties about that. At the moment, no options are off the table," she told Sky News.
Elsewhere, the UK's competition watchdog on Tuesday said it has accepted legally binding undertakings from Safran SA, allowing the Paris-based aerospace group to proceed with its acquisition of several activities from Collins Aerospace, part of RTX.
The CMA said the undertakings include the divestment of Safran's trimmable horizontal stabiliser actuator, or THSA, business. The CMA previously found that Safran and Collins are close competitors in the THSA market, and warned that the merger could potentially harm downstream customers such as airlines and cargo operators.
In other M&A news, Catalonia-based lender Banco de Sabadell confirmed it has received interest from prospective buyers of its UK division TSB Banking Group.
In a brief statement, the Catalonia-based lender said it had received "preliminary non-binding expressions of interest" for TSB from unnamed bidders, and will assess any potential binding offer. "Any transaction would be subject to the satisfaction of all legal obligations," the bank added.
Late on Monday, the Financial Times named potential bidders as Barclays, NatWest, the UK arm of Banco Santander and HSBC.
In European equities on Tuesday, the CAC 40 in Paris was down 1.0%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was down 1.3%.
The pound was quoted lower at USD1.3562 at midday on Tuesday in London, compared to USD1.3594 at the equities close on Monday. The euro stood at USD1.1565, down against USD1.1591. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at JPY144.68 compared to JPY144.09.
Stocks in New York were called lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was called down 0.6%, the S&P 500 index down 0.6%, and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.6%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.42%, narrowing from 4.43%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.93%, widening from 4.92%.
Gold was quoted lower at USD3,397.18 an ounce on Tuesday against USD3,403.81.
Still to come on Tuesday's economic calendar, the US has retail sales; import and export prices; and industrial production data.
By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter
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