The blue-chip FTSE 100 dipped 0.3% by 0927 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 slipped 1.1%
International News via Reuters:
The main UK stock indexes eased on Thursday after recording their strongest session in months a day earlier, as oil prices rebounded on growing doubts over a fragile ceasefire in the Middle East conflict.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 dipped 0.3% by 0927 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 slipped 1.1%.* The FTSE 350 energy index climbed 1% as oil prices jumpedalmost 3% on concerns that energy flows through the crucialStrait of Hormuz will remain restricted. [O/R] * Viability of the ceasefire is in question amid continuedIsraeli strikes on Lebanon, causing Iran to suggest it would be”unreasonable” to proceed with talks to forge a permanent peacedeal. * The FTSE 100 recorded its biggest percentage gain in ayear on Wednesday after the two-week ceasefire deal between theU.S. and Iran. * Rate-sensitive homebuilders came under pressure as bondyields edged higher. Two-year gilt yield, which reflectsnear-term rate expectations, rose to 4.25% after its largestone-day fall since March 2023. * Traders were betting on 40 basis points of rate hikes fromthe Bank of England by the end of this year, compared to 32 bpson Wednesday. * Britain’s housing market cooled noticeably last month aseconomic uncertainty stemming from the Iran war unnerved buyerswho face rising mortgage rates, a survey from the RoyalInstitution of Chartered Surveyors showed. * Ceres Power Holdings fell 7.7% after brokerage Peel Huntdowngraded the clean energy technology developer’s stock to”sell” from “hold.” * ME Group International climbed 3.7% after the vendingmachine operator secured a partnership with retailer ASDA toinstall Wash.ME laundry machines.
Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed
