London’s FTSE 100 hovered around 10,750 points on Thursday, its lowest level in two weeks, stabilizing after two consecutive sessions of losses as the global bond selloff showed signs of easing. Oil prices slipped following comments from President Donald Trump that any renewed US strikes on Iran would likely be short-lived, helping to temper concerns over inflation and further energy-cost pressures. At the same time, metals prices rebounded as fears of a broader Middle East escalation diminished, potentially easing pressure on central banks to raise interest rates and bolstering demand for non–interest-bearing precious metals.
Among individual stocks, BP and Shell each declined about 0.7%. In contrast, miners Fresnillo, Endeavour, Glencore, Anglo American, Rio Tinto and Antofagasta advanced between 0.5% and 1%. On the downside, M&G fell 2.2%, Compass slipped 1.4% and NEXT lost 1%. Meanwhile, Airtel Africa, Vodafone and London Stock Exchange gained 3.2%, 2.4% and 1.1%, respectively.
