The FTSE 100 slipped 0.5% on Thursday after two consecutive sessions of gains, pressured by losses in oil majors and mining stocks. Shell and BP each declined by more than 1% as crude prices extended their recent slide, while softer base metal prices weighed on the mining sector, with Rio Tinto down 1.6%, Glencore off 1.6% and Anglo American lower by 2%.
Tesco fell more than 2% after reporting weaker-than-expected first-quarter sales growth, attributing part of the slowdown to poor weather. Like-for-like sales in the UK rose 1.8% in the three months to the end of May, undershooting market forecasts of 2.7%.
Several stocks, including Persimmon, Land Securities and 3i Group, traded ex-dividend, adding further downward pressure to the index.
Investor attention now turns to the Bank of England’s policy decision following stronger-than-expected labour market data. The BoE is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged as inflation pressures moderate and energy prices continue to decline. In the US, the Federal Reserve also kept rates on hold, though nine of the 19 policymakers now anticipate at least one rate increase before year-end.
