11th Mar 2026 12:00
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London were lower at midday on Wednesday, as escalating tensions in the Middle East and fresh attacks to vessels near the Strait of Hormuz kept investors on edge.
The FTSE 100 index was down 82.26 points, 0.8%, at 10,329.98. The FTSE 250 was down 129.37 points, 0.6%, at 22,362.90, and the AIM all-share was down 2.23 points, 0.3%, at 776.57.
The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.8% at 1,027.32, the Cboe UK 250 was down 1.0% at 19,585.33, and the Cboe small companies was down 0.3% at 17,777.89.
Certain countries' plans to release part of their strategic oil reserves "are undoubtedly part of a highly coordinated strategy", French Finance Minister Roland Lescure said.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said her country would tap into its oil reserves to counter high energy prices as a result of the war in the Middle East, while Germany's Economy & Energy Minister Katherina Reiche said her country would do the same.
Meanwhile, three commercial ships were damaged by "unknown projectiles" in the Strait of Hormuz, with at least one vessel catching fire and 23 crew members being rescued.
The UK's maritime agency said three vessels had been hit near the key waterway, while CNN reported that Tehran had begun laying mines there.
Earlier, the US military said it had destroyed 16 Iranian mine-deploying ships in the area after President Donald Trump warned Iran not to "put out any mines".
Iran continued strikes across the region, including in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait. Four people were injured when two drones fell near Dubai airport, though air traffic was unaffected, marking the second drone attack in the area in recent days.
Israel launched a renewed wave of attacks on Iran and Lebanon, including a strike on an apartment building in central Beirut. Iran said it had carried out its "most intense and heaviest operation" since the start of the war, while its UN ambassador said more than 1,300 people have been killed in strikes since the conflict began.
Separately, a suspected Iranian drone hit a US diplomatic facility in Iraq, according to sources cited by CNN. The son of Iran's president said newly appointed Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is "safe" amid rumours he had been injured in US-Israeli strikes. Iran's police chief warned that any domestic protests would be handled "in the same way we deal with the enemy".
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves said it is "certainly not good for the British economy to have trade disrupted" as a result of the crisis.
Appearing before Parliament's Treasury Committee, she said it would be "unwise to speculate" on the impact of the conflict on inflation, growth or interest rates, but confirmed the Treasury is examining a range of scenarios and could intervene on energy costs if necessary.
Brent oil was quoted at USD90.44 a barrel at midday in London, up from USD87.92 late Tuesday.
In European equities on Wednesday, the CAC 40 in Paris was down 0.5%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was down 1.1%.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3434 at midday in London, lower compared to USD1.3458 at Tuesday's close. The euro stood at USD1.1604, lower against USD1.1648. Against the yen, the dollar traded at JPY158.38, up from JPY157.56.
The FTSE 100 slightly outperformed its European peers after missing out on the strongest gains in the previous session, highlighting choppy trading conditions.
On the FTSE 250, Balfour Beatty led the index, up 7.6%, after announcing a new GBP200 million share buyback and issuing a positive outlook.
Breedon Group followed, up 3.0%, after reporting higher revenue but lower profit in 2025. Revenue rose 9% to GBP1.71 billion, though on a like-for-like basis it fell 3%. Pretax profit declined 16% to GBP105.3 million, while free cash flow rose 17% to a post-Covid record GBP133.2 million. Breedon declared a total dividend of 15.00p per share, up 3.4%.
Breedon, later on Wednesday, also announced the launch of its "British Cement Advocacy" campaign, advocating for "significant government intervention" in the industry this year. The company says this aims to support domestically produced cement.
At the bottom of the FTSE 250, Harbour Energy dropped 8.8% after Potomac View Investments completed a placing of 60,000 shares at 255p, raising GBP153 million. Potomac will hold a 3.5% stake following completion, with Barclays acting as bookrunner.
Promotional products supplier 4imprint fell 8.5% after reporting pretax profit of USD150.8 million for 2025, down from USD154.4 million, as tariffs continued to weigh on margins. Gross margin was 32.4%, broadly in line with 31.8% a year earlier.
According to Chair Paul Moody, trading in 2026 so far has tracked in line with expectations.
"Orders and revenue are slightly down compared to the same period in 2025, reflecting continued uncertainty in the market. As anticipated, tariff-related costs are being phased in by suppliers and tariff policy continues to evolve."
Supermarket Income REIT was down 1.2% after reporting a 1.4% decline in interim pretax profit to GBP35.7 million for the six months to December 31, alongside a dip in income, though it cited a "compelling" acquisition pipeline.
Among smaller caps, Rainbow Rare Earths rose 9.6% after signing a development agreement with Mosaic to advance its Uberaba project in Brazil towards first production targeted in 2030.
Physiomics jumped 25% after a disclosure showed Mike Whitlow increased his stake to 13.69% from 8.01%.
Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas gained 22% after agreeing to acquire the remaining shares in JHI Associates in a USD52.3 million share-based transaction, issuing 96.3 million shares and giving JHI shareholders a 45% stake in the enlarged company.
Stocks in New York were called higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 were each called up 0.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite was seen 0.1% higher.
US February consumer price index data are due at 1230 GMT, with annual inflation expected to hold at 2.4%, unchanged from January.
Although CPI figures typically draw close market scrutiny, current sentiment is largely driven by geopolitical developments, and the report may have a more muted impact as it predates the recent spike in energy prices.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.17%, widening from 4.11%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.81%, widening from 4.74%.
Gold was quoted at USD5,185.60 an ounce, down from USD5,228.60 on Tuesday.
Still to come on Wednesday's economic calendar are US CPI and the US monthly budget statement.
By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News reporter
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