The FTSE 100 opened 45.03 points lower at 10,771.11 on Friday after the Bank of England kept interest rates unchanged while adopting a more hawkish stance. Investors also weighed the Bank of Japan’s latest rate hike. Meanwhile, Brent crude futures fell 2.05% to USD 102.5 per barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate declined 1.89% to USD 99.98.
BoE Holds Rates at 3.75%
The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee voted 6-3 to leave Bank Rate at 3.75%, repeating the split seen in July. Huw Pill, Megan Greene and Catherine Mann again voted for a 25-basis-point increase.
In a notable move, the BoE paused all gilt sales until April 2027 and removed bonds maturing after 2049 — around GBP 120 billion — from active sales. The Bank is also exploring a mechanism to transfer gilts directly to the UK government treasury, replacing long-dated supply with shorter issuance.
Sterling and Commodities
Sterling was quoted at USD 1.3363 early Friday, slightly higher than USD 1.3356 at Thursday’s London close. Against the euro, the pound rose to EUR 1.1638 from EUR 1.1627.
Gainers and Losers
Top gainers:
- Fresnillo: +2.70% at 3,085p
- IG Group Holdings: +2.21% at 1,344p
- Endeavour Mining: +2.20% at 4,777p
- Lion Finance Group: +2.17% at 14,120p
- Antofagasta: +1.35% at 3,752p
- Polar Capital Technology Trust: +1.14% at 664.50p
Top decliners:
- Coca-Cola HBC: -3.86% at 4,432p
- Next: -2.51% at 14,545p
- Coca-Cola Europacific Partners: -1.25% at 7,505p
- Shell: -1.13% at 3,530.50p
- London Stock Exchange Group: -0.56% at 8,216p
- Games Workshop Group: -0.51% at 17,670p
UK Retail Sales Rebound in August
Retail sales rose 0.5% in August, reversing a 0.5% decline in July, according to the Office for National Statistics. The increase was driven by warmer weather, which boosted demand for fans and air conditioning units, while the World Cup lifted sales of sports merchandise and clothing. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a 0.2% drop.
Investec Raises Earnings Targets
Investec doubled down on its earnings outlook after strong activity in its South Africa division offset a subdued UK performance. The lender projected earnings per share of 41.7p to 43.3p for the six months to 30 September, representing a 3% to 7% rise year on year. South African wealth funds under management grew 13.8% to GBP 30.7 billion, while the UK business expects operating profit to fall between 2% and 6% from the GBP 230 million recorded last year.
Global Market Update
Wall Street rebounded overnight as government bond yields retreated. The S&P 500 gained 1.2%, the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.7%, and the Dow Jones added 0.6%, or 316 points.
In Asia on Friday, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 climbed 1.38% to 65,018.95, while China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.94%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 0.56%, and South Korea’s Kospi rose 2.66%. In India, the Nifty 50 and Sensex gained 0.25% and 0.28%, respectively.