UK stocks experienced a slight decline on Friday following a YouGov poll indicating that Nigel Farage's Reform UK has overtaken Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party.
According to the Times newspaper poll, Reform UK's support increased to 19%, up from 17%, while the Conservative Party remained steady at 18%.
In other economic news, the Bank of England's quarterly Inflation Attitudes Survey, conducted by Ipsos, revealed that short-term inflation expectations among Britons softened in May. The one-year inflation forecast dropped to 2.6%, down from 2.8% in February. Respondents estimated the current inflation rate at 5.5%, compared to 6.1% in the prior survey period. Additionally, the five-year inflation forecast remains unchanged at 3.1%.
The FTSE 100 index fell by 0.1% to 8,152, following a 0.6% decline the previous day.
Corporate developments saw Crest Nicholson shares soar by 8.4% after the troubled housebuilder declined a second all-share takeover bid from its larger competitor Bellway. Meanwhile, Tesco shares rose by 2.3% following a "robust" increase in grocery purchases by UK shoppers in the recent quarter.
