22nd Jun 2026 09:02
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened mixed on Monday, as investors continue to weigh the impact of the US and Iran's peace talks over the weekend.
The FTSE 100 index opened up 0.20 points at 10,363.47. The FTSE 250 was down 38.79 points, 0.2%, at 23,161.94, and the AIM all-share was up 2.33 points, 0.3%, at 798.16.
The Cboe UK 100 was marginally lower at 1,027.98, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.3% at 19,770.94, and the Cboe small companies was down 0.1% at 18,437.91.
Noting the "uncertainty" surrounding the talks, Swissquote's Ipek Ozkardeskaya recapped: "On Friday, the talks were postponed [likely due to Israel's renewed attack on Lebanon]. On Saturday, Iran announced that it would close the Strait of Hormuz again.
"Yet senior US and Iranian officials still met at Switzerland's Burgenstock resort on Sunday, to kick off the 60-day negotiation period. They said the talks went well. Meanwhile, US President Trump continued to post threats on social media. And here we are, Monday morning."
Brent oil was quoted lower at USD79.19 a barrel early in London on Monday from USD80.21 late Friday.
Gold was quoted at USD4,195.97 an ounce, higher against USD4,152.32. Miner Fresnillo led the FTSE 100, up 1.6%.
In European equities on Monday, the CAC 40 in Paris was down 0.2%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 0.3%.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3197 early Monday, lower compared to USD1.3227 on Friday. Against the euro, sterling fell to EUR1.1522 from EUR1.1532 a day prior.
Keir Starmer is expected to resign as UK prime minister, pitching his Labour Party into a contest to choose its next leader and the next occupant of 10 Downing Street.
The euro stood at USD1.1448, lower against USD1.1469. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at JPY161.72, higher compared to JPY161.26.
In Asia on Monday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo was up 1.6%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was up 1.8%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was down 0.5%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed down 0.1%.
In the US on Thursday, Wall Street ended higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.0%, the S&P 500 up 1.1% and the Nasdaq Composite up 1.9%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.49% on Monday, widening from 4.46% on Thursday. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.92%, widening from 4.90%.
Back in London, on the FTSE 250, easyJet was 3.3% higher, after would-be acquirer Castlelake announced its third rejected takeover proposal "to enable easyJet shareholders to consider its merits".
The third bid offers 625 pence per share, valuing the budget airline company at nearly GBP5 billion according to AFP.
Babcock was the worst-performing FTSE 100 stock, down 4.0%, despite backing its guidance for the current financial year and reiterating its medium-term targets.
The defence major said pretax profit in the year ended March 31 fell 14% to GBP283.7 million from GBP329.1 million a year prior. Underlying operating profit fell to GBP293.3 million, after a GBP140.0 million charge relating to its Type 31 frigate contract. Excluding the charge, underlying operating profit rose 19% to GBP433.3 million.
Revenue, however, rose 7.2% to GBP5.18 billion from GBP4.83 billion, driven by strong performances in its Nuclear and Aviation businesses. Babcock also increased its total dividend by 15% to 7.5p per share from 6.5p, including a final dividend of 5.0p, up from 4.5p.
In small caps, Aquis listing SulNOx jumped 9.5%.
The green fuel technology developer announced its largest-ever commercial deal, a new four-year supply agreement with existing client Eastern Pacific Shipping.
The deal "significantly expands" EPS's deployment of Sulnox Eco, from approximately 30 vessels to over 50 vessels, SulNOx said, adding that EPS Ventures is increasing its strategic investment by subscribing for up to 5.5 million new SulNOx shares at 2p each.
Still to come on Monday's economic calendar, look out for Irish producer inflation and Canadian consumer inflation.
By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter
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