The FTSE 100 fell 1.5% on Friday, pulling back after two straight sessions of gains, as investors digested recent central-bank decisions and weaker oil prices. Banks led the market lower: HSBC declined more than 1.5%, while Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group each lost about 2.5%. Among energy majors, Shell slipped 0.9% and BP 1.1%. Unilever eased around 0.5%, and Rolls-Royce retreated more than 2%. Mining stocks also came under pressure, with Rio Tinto down 1.7% and Glencore tumbling 4%.
On the policy front, the Bank of England left interest rates unchanged on Thursday but cautioned that a prolonged conflict in the Middle East could necessitate tighter monetary policy. Earlier in the week, both the Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan raised rates and signaled that further tightening remains possible.
In economic data, UK retail sales rose 0.5% in August, defying expectations for a 0.2% decline. For the week as a whole, the FTSE 100 finished largely flat.
