After opening slightly up and advancing further, the UK market turned weak Tuesday morning even as stocks from mining and banking sectors stayed firm.
Despite easing geopolitical and trade tensions, and news about the U.S. Congress preparing to vote on a spending bill to end the government shutdown, the mood in the British market was cautious this morning.
The benchmark FTSE 100 was down 49.61 points or 0.48% at 10,291.95 a few minutes before noon. The index climbed to 10,372.21 earlier in the session.
Miners Endeavour Mining, Anglo American Plc and Antofagasta gained 5%, 3.75% and 3.5%, respectively. Fresnillo moved up nearly 3% and Rio Tinto climbed 2.1%. Glencore gained about 1.2%.
Natwest Group and Lloyds Banking Group gained 1.7% and 1.5%, respectively, while Barclays advanced 0.8%.
Marks & Spencer and Babock International gained 2.3% and 2%, respectively. Rolls-Royce Holdings, Weir Group, Scottish Mortgage, British American Tobacco, Imperial Brands and St. James’s Place also posted strong gains.
Relx tanked nearly 10%. The stock is down more than 40% from a record high it posted in February last year.
Experian shed about 6.5%. JD Sports Fashion drifted lower by 5.6%, while The Sage Group, LSEG, Informa, Burberry Group, Metlen Energy & Metals and Diploma lost 2%-4%.
Drug maker AstraZeneca dropped 1.3% after the U.S. FDA rejected a subcutaneous version of its lupus medicine that would make it easier to administer.
Intertek Group, Autotrader Group, ICG, Ashtead Group, Reckitt Benckiser, RightMove and Compass Group also declined sharply.
Market Analysis
FTSE 100 Slips After Positive Start
2026-02-03 12:06:15
