28th Sep 2026 09:13
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Monday, as housebuilders surged on plans to revive the UK's 'Help to Buy' scheme, while miners fell as gold prices tumbled and oil climbed above USD107 a barrel.
The FTSE 100 index opened up 25.29 points, 0.2%, at 10,720.54. The FTSE 250 was up 224.26 points, 1.0%, at 24,505.40, and the AIM all-share was down 0.25 points, marginally lower, at 786.11.
The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.3% at 1,066.33, the Cboe UK 250 was up 1.3% at 21,306.09, and the Cboe small companies was up 0.5% at 18,863.42.
In European equities on Monday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.4%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 0.1%.
Brent oil was trading at USD107.78 a barrel early Monday, up from USD106.21 late Friday.
Brent oil has rallied above USD107/barrel amid fading optimism that progress might be made in talks between the US and Iran.
Iran said it would not soften its conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz after US President Donald Trump rejected Tehran's proposal. Trump told Axios that Iran had overplayed its hand with its demands, while saying he expected negotiations to resume this week.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3254 early Monday, higher than USD1.3238 at the London equities close on Friday. Against the euro, sterling rose to EUR1.1643 from EUR1.1616 a day prior.
The euro traded at USD1.1377 early Monday, lower than USD1.1396 late Friday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY157.45 versus JPY157.36.
On the FTSE 100, miners were among the worst performers amid lower metals prices and rising energy costs.
Fresnillo fell 5.6%, Endeavour Mining lost 4.7%, Antofagasta declined 3.3% and Anglo American was down 2.8%. Glencore fell 2.0% and Rio Tinto lost 1.8%.
Gold was quoted at USD4,157.70 an ounce early Monday, sharply lower than USD4,282.86 on Friday.
At the other end of the index, housebuilders surged after the UK government unveiled plans for a new loan programme to help first-time buyers purchase new-build homes.
The programme, called 'Your First Home', will allow eligible buyers to purchase a property with a 2.5% deposit alongside a 20% equity loan.
The scheme will be funded through cuts to government budgets elsewhere, with Chancellor John Healey expected to set out further details at next month's budget.
Developers will also contribute towards the cost of running the programme, while the loans will have an initial interest-free period. Pre-registration is expected to open by the end of 2026.
FTSE 100-listed Barratt Redrow jumped 14%, while Howden Joinery Group rose 5.1%.
On the FTSE 250, housebuilders also rallied, with Persimmon and Bellway both up 15%, while Taylor Wimpey gained 13%. Berkeley Group Holdings rose 5.3%.
Also on the mid-cap index, Keller Group rose 4.3% after being awarded a further USD650 million contract variation order for the reconstruction of the I-40 highway in the US.
Including the latest award, Keller has now secured around USD1 billion of work on the project, of which around 10% has been completed. The latest work is expected to extend over the next three to four years and increases Keller's order book to around GBP2.4 billion.
Among smaller caps, Burford Capital rose 9.6% after noting a USD5.7 billion jury award to Taction Technology in its patent infringement case against Apple, in which Burford has a financial entitlement.
A federal jury in San Diego found that Apple infringed claims from two Taction patents relating to haptics technology used in products including the iPhone and Apple Watch. Taction filed the lawsuit in 2021, while Apple has said it will appeal the verdict.
If the award were paid in full, Burford's entitlement would be USD1.4 billion, split roughly equally between its balance sheet and investment funds.
However, Burford cautioned that the award is not a final judgment and remains subject to significant post-trial, appellate and collection risks. It noted that very few large patent verdicts survive the post-verdict process intact and said its ultimate recovery could be substantially lower or, in some circumstances, result in a total loss.
In Asia on Monday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo closed down 0.7%. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed down 1.7%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong closed up 0.6%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 0.2%.
In the US on Friday, Wall Street ended higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.9%, the S&P 500 up 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite also up 0.5%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 5.20%, narrowing from 5.21%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 5.51%, narrowing from 5.52%.
By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News senior economics reporter
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