20th Aug 2026 09:21
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened lower on Thursday, as a sharp fall for JD Sports Fashion and a host of ex-dividend stocks weighed on the FTSE 100.
The FTSE 100 index opened down 25.37 points, 0.2%, at 10,717.98. The FTSE 250 was 62.00 points, 0.3%, at 24,581.52, and the AIM all-share was up 2.30 points, 0.3%, at 803.84.
The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.3% at 1,065.03, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.3% at 21,374.80, and the Cboe Small Companies was marginally lower at 19,070.80.
Back in London, JD Sports Fashion plunged 13% to the bottom of the FTSE 100 after reporting weaker second-quarter trading and cutting its financial 2027 profit outlook.
Group organic sales fell 1.3% in the 13 weeks to August 1, while like-for-like sales declined 3.1%.
North America was the weakest region, with organic sales down 4.5% and like-for-like sales falling 6.8%. In the UK, like-for-like sales rose 0.8%, although organic sales edged 0.2% lower.
For the first half, organic sales fell 0.7%, and like-for-like sales declined 2.8%.
JD said first-half trading reflected "incremental cost-of-living pressures" on its core consumer from continued inflation, including higher fuel prices, as well as ongoing changes in footwear product cycles at some of its major brand partners.
Both factors were more acute than expected in North America.
The retailer now expects financial 2027 pretax profit before adjusting items of between GBP700 million and GBP800 million, lowered from its previous GBP750 million to GBP850 million range. It maintained free cash flow guidance of GBP460 million to GBP520 million.
Chief Executive Regis Schultz said: "Trading in the second quarter remained tough...North America saw the most acute impact, also reflecting a slower quarter for high-heat footwear product and the timing of 'back-to-school' demand."
London's blue-chip index was also weighed down by a number of stocks trading ex-dividend. Investec fell 4.4%, Legal & General lost 3.4%, and Entain was down 2.7%.
On the FTSE 250, Trainline extended Wednesday's losses after the UK Competition & Markets Authority opened a formal consumer protection investigation into how mandatory booking fees are presented on its platform.
The CMA is investigating whether mandatory train and coach booking fees are included in the total upfront price shown to customers at the start of the booking process. If the regulator ultimately finds an infringement, it can order customer compensation and impose fines of up to 10% of global turnover.
Hays lost 2.9% after swinging to a statutory pretax loss in financial 2026 as exceptional costs nearly tripled, outweighing an improvement in underlying profitability.
The staffing provider reported a pretax loss of GBP54.5 million for the year ended June 30, compared with a GBP1.5 million profit a year earlier. Net fees fell 7% to GBP905.5 million from GBP972.4 million, while its total dividend was cut to 0.44p from 1.24p.
Exceptional costs surged to GBP89.6 million from GBP30.7 million, reflecting operational restructuring, property rationalisation, business disposals and impairments linked to the rollout of its new Momentum strategy.
Excluding exceptional items, however, pretax profit rose 9% to GBP35.1 million and operating profit increased 7% to GBP48.6 million.
Hays said it expects further cost reductions in financial 2027, while trading in July and August has been in line with expectations, with no significant change in activity levels from the fourth quarter.
In European equities on Thursday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.1%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was down 0.3%.
Fresh data showed German producer prices rose more quickly than expected in July, driven by higher costs for intermediate goods and energy.
According to the Federal Statistical Office, producer prices of industrial products rose 3.0% annually in July and 1.1% month on month. The annual reading topped the FXStreet-cited consensus of 2.7%.
Excluding energy, producer prices rose 2.7% annually and edged up 0.1% from June. Destatis said intermediate goods prices increased 5.4% from a year earlier, while energy prices climbed 3.8%.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3626 early Thursday, higher than USD1.3608 at the London equities close on Wednesday. Against the euro, sterling fell to EUR1.1654 from EUR1.1669 a day prior.
The euro traded at USD1.1692 early Thursday, higher than USD1.1662 late Wednesday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY158.44 versus JPY158.46.
In Asia on Thursday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo ended up 1.4%. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed 0.2% higher, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong gained 0.9%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 0.3%.
In the US on Wednesday, Wall Street ended higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite all rising 0.2%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.66%, unchanged from Wednesday. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 5.20%, unchanged from Wednesday.
Investors continued to monitor the conflict between the US and Iran after US President Donald Trump announced what he called a "crushing economic operation" against Tehran, describing the measures as "economic warfare".
Trump said the US could eventually return to negotiations with Iran, although he suggested there was little urgency to do so at present.
Meanwhile, the head of Iran's armed forces renewed Tehran's warning to Persian Gulf states against assisting the US military, saying any support would amount to participating in operations against Iran.
The United Arab Emirates on Wednesday said it was suspending all trade and financial dealings with Iran, after issuing its first warning to residents in weeks of an incoming missile threat on Tuesday.
Brent crude traded at USD92.69 a barrel early Thursday, higher than USD92.40 late Wednesday.
Gold was quoted at USD4,494.23 an ounce early Thursday, slightly higher than USD4,483.13 on Wednesday.
Still to come on Thursday's economic calendar, the eurozone reports construction output, while the US releases weekly jobless claims and Canada publishes producer price inflation.
By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News senior economics reporter
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