The FTSE 100 recovered from early losses to trade broadly flat on Monday, as hopes of de-escalation in the Middle East briefly supported sentiment. Brent crude fell more than 5% after President Donald Trump announced a pause in strikes against Iranian energy infrastructure, following what he described as productive talks aimed at ending hostilities. Oil later pared part of its losses after Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported there had been no direct or indirect contact with Washington.
Banking stocks reversed sharply higher, with HSBC, Barclays and NatWest gaining between 1.9% and 3%. Rolls-Royce advanced more than 2%, while Rio Tinto added over 1%. In contrast, oil majors Shell and BP declined by more than 3%, AstraZeneca slipped over 1%, and BAT and BAE Systems fell 1.5% and 2.7%, respectively.
