24th Sep 2025 12:03
(Alliance News) - London stocks were mixed at midday on Wednesday, following a Wall Street slump on Tuesday as investors digested US President Donald Trump's turnaround on the conflict in Ukraine.
The FTSE 100 index was down 9.73 points, 0.1%, at 9,213.59. The FTSE 250 was down 6.06 points at 21,689.29, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.81 of a point, 0.1%, at 782.06.
The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.2% at 923.90, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.1% at 18,984.25, and the Cboe Small Companies was up 0.1% at 17,521.14.
"The FTSE 100 was off to a poor start on Wednesday, taking its cue from losses in the US overnight as Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell painted a mixed picture on the outlook for interest rates," said AJ Bell analyst Russ Mould.
"Powell's measured take, as he seeks to balance risks posed by inflation and a stuttering labour market, was in direct contrast to his recently appointed Fed colleague Stephen Miran who made the case for more aggressive cuts 24 hours earlier."
Stocks in New York were called mostly higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was called slightly lower, the S&P 500 index up 0.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.3%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.11%, narrowing from 4.14%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.73%, trimmed from 4.76%.
In European equities on Wednesday, the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.3%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt shed 0.1%.
Brent oil was quoted higher at USD68.31 a barrel at midday in London on Wednesday from USD67.98 late Tuesday.
Gold was quoted down at USD3,764.23 an ounce against USD3,778.27.
"Geopolitical tensions continued to underpin demand [for gold]," said DHF Capital analyst Bas Kooijman. "Nato described Russia's airspace violation over Estonia as part of a broader pattern of aggression, warning it would deploy "all necessary measures" to defend members. At the same time, conflict in Gaza showed no signs of easing, reinforcing safe-haven flows into bullion."
The Kremlin on Wednesday said it had no choice but to continue its military offensive on Ukraine, as Moscow rejected Donald Trump's claim that Russia was a "paper tiger".
The comments come a day after Trump said Ukraine could win back all of its territory from Russia, which he characterised as a "paper tiger" with a failing economy – a major pivot in his stance on the three-and-a-half-year conflict.
"We are continuing our special military operation to ensure our interests and achieve the goals," set by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday, using Moscow's term for its assault on Ukraine.
Goodwin led London's FTSE 250 around midday, jumping 17%.
The Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire-based engineering and manufacturing company reported forward momentum in its workload and activity during the first half of 2026, alongside a new collaboration with a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman Corp.
It said its workload amounted to GBP357 million at August 31, up 24% from GBP287 million at the end of April. Goodwin noted "a similar increase" in activity levels.
The firm added that Goodwin Steel Castings has signed a memorandum of understanding with Northrop Grumman International Trading, part of the US aerospace and defence firm's Mission Systems division.
The MoU is for an initial USD16 million order which covers four defence programmes, though Goodwin said: "As the USA submarine programmes have funding releases, the expected orders will likely develop to over USD200 million."
AstraZeneca fell 1.0%.
The Cambridge, England-based pharmaceuticals company and Daiichi Sankyo said the US Food & Drug Administration has granted priority review for Enhertu in combination with pertuzumab as a first-line treatment for adults with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer.
Susan Galbraith, executive vice president of Oncology R&D at AstraZeneca, said the trial results mark "the first major evolution in treatment in this first-line setting in more than a decade."
The FDA has set a target action date of January 23, 2026 under the Prescription Drug User Fee Act. The submission is also being reviewed under the Real-Time Oncology Review programme, which allows regulators to assess parts of applications earlier to accelerate access to new treatments.
Fiske slumped 23%.
The London-based stockbroker and investor expects to post revenue of around GBP7.9 million for the year that ended June 30, which would be up roughly 6% from the year before. Pretax profit is expected 43% higher on-year at GBP1.4 million, with earnings per share of 11 pence.
The firm said trading in the current financial year to date is in line with management expectations, though it "remains mindful of potentially more volatile market conditions in the coming months due to the generally uncertain geopolitical environment". The board remains confident in maintaining revenue growth nonetheless.
Fiske has also agreed a voluntary requirement with the UK Financial Conduct Authority, which introduces restrictions related to the onboarding of new clients and the transfer of the company's assets. The firm expects the requirement to have a "minimal effect" on its existing activities, and says it will co-operate with the FCA to ensure the restrictions are lifted "as soon as possible".
The pound was quoted down at USD1.3475 at midday on Wednesday in London, compared to USD1.3509 at the equities close on Tuesday. The euro stood lower at USD1.1760, against USD1.1792. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY148.36 compared to JPY147.87.
Still to come on Wednesday's economic calendar, US new home sales figures.
By Emily Parsons, Alliance News reporter
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