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| Yesterday’s UK 100 Leaders | Price (p) | % Chg |
| Sage Group | 1,022.0 | 8.8% |
| Weir Group | 2,744.0 | 8.7% |
| Burberry Group | 1,193.0 | 4.7% |
| Reckitt Benckiser Grou | 5,400.0 | 4.3% |
| BP | 543.5 | 3.4% |
| Yesterday’s UK 100 Laggards | Price (p) | % Chg |
| Aberdeen Group | 238.0 | -4.3% |
| Diploma | 7,110.0 | -4.2% |
| IMI | 2,860.0 | -3.8% |
| Halma | 3,410.0 | -3.4% |
| Fresnillo | 2,481.0 | -3.2% |
| Major World Indices | Price | % Chg | 1 Year |
| UK 100 INDEX | 10,908 | 0.3% | 19.4% |
| DOW JONES INDUS. AVG | 51,594 | -2.2% | 15.6% |
| DAX INDEX | 25,460 | 0.0% | 5.1% |
| NIKKEI 225 | 61,434 | -1.5% | 51.1% |
| S&P/ASX 200 INDEX | 9,039 | 1.0% | 3.2% |
| Commodity | Units | Price | % Chg |
| WTI Crude Oil (Nymex) | USD/bbl. | 84.46 | 6.56% |
| Brent Crude (ICE) | USD/bbl. | 90.92 | 8.12% |
| Gold Spot | USD/t oz. | 4,074 | 0.2% |
| Copper (Comex) | USd/lb. | 631 | 0.8% |
Click graph to enlarge
The UK 100 is called to open -42 points at at 10,862. Stocks in London are set to open lower on Thursday, after US stocks tumbled in the wake of Wednesday’s Federal Reserve decision.
Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh on Wednesday said the central bank will not waiver in its fight to bring inflation back to target and that higher interest rates can be part of the solution.
The decision, which was expected, leaves the federal funds rate target range at 3.50-3.75%, and marks the Fed’s fifth consecutive meeting without a change in rates.
The US military completed a “heavy wave of strikes” against Iran on Thursday in retaliation against Tehran targeting American bases in Jordan, as fighting intensified in the Middle East war after a nearly week-long pause.
The reignited hostilities have drawn in the Islamic republic’s proxies, and appear to have dashed hopes of a quick return to negotiations between the foes.
US President Donald Trump had vowed to hit Iran “hard” after Tehran launched missiles at Jordan, its first regional strike in days.
In the US on Wednesday, Wall Street ended lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 2.2%, the S&P 500 down 1.5% and the Nasdaq Composite down 1.7%.
In Asia on Thursday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo was up 0.7%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.7%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was 0.1% lower. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney was down 0.9%.
Lloyds Banking Group unveiled a £1 billion share buyback and a new four-year strategy after reporting a stronger profit for the second quarter than expected. Statutory pre-tax profit rose to £4.3 billion in the first half, from £3.5 billion a year earlier. Second-quarter profit of £2.3 billion beat the £2.1 billion expected by analysts. Underlying net interest income increased 9% to £7.3 billion. Its banking net interest margin, the difference between what the bank earns from loans and pays out on deposits, improved by 15 basis points to 3.19%, helped by structural hedge income and lending growth. As well as the new buyback, the interim dividend was hiked 30% to 1.58p a share, equivalent to £918 million. Lloyds also announced a buyback of up to £1 billion, adding to the £1.75 billion programme unveiled with its 2025 results. Chief executive Charlie Nunn said the bank had delivered “sustained strength in financial performance”, with income growth, controlled costs and increasing shareholder returns. Full-year guidance was left unchanged, including net interest income above £14.9 billion and a return on tangible equity above 16%. Under the new Accelerate 2030 plan, Lloyds is targeting a return on tangible equity of around 20% and a cost-to-income ratio below 45% by 2030.
London Stock Exchange Group raised its 2026 profit-margin outlook and nudged up its revenue growth guidance after a busy first half for trading.
UK
Shell (SHEL) – Q2 2026 Results
BAE Systems (BA.) – Half Year Results
Drax Group (DRX) – Half Year Results
Endeavour Mining (EDV) – Half Year Results
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) – Half Year Results
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) – Half Year Results
Mondi (MNDI) – Half Year Results
Rentokil Initial (RTO) – Interim Results
US
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co (NYSE:BMY) PMO
Mastercard Inc Class A (NYSE:MA) PMO
Willis Towers Watson (NASDAQ:WTW) PMO
Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) AMC
Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) AMC
Coinbase Global Inc Ordinary Shares – Class A (NASDAQ:COIN) AMC E
Riot Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:RIOT) AMC E
Rivian Automotive Inc Class A (NASDAQ:RIVN) AMC
Strategy Inc Class A (NASDAQ:MSTR) AMC
UK
ITV (ITV) – Interim Results
IMI (IMI) – Half Year Results
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (IAG) – Q2 Results 2026
Intertek Group (ITRK) – Half Year Results
Melrose Industries (MRO) – Half Year Results
NatWest Group (NWG) – Half Year Results
Rightmove (RMV) – Half Year Results
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) – Half Year Results
US
AbbVie Inc (NYSE:ABBV) PMO
Anglogold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) PMO
Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX) PMO
Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) PMO
EU Business Climate
EU Consumer Confidence
EU Economic Sentiment Indicator
EU Gross Domestic Product
BoE Interest Rate Decision
BoE Minutes
BoE Monetary Policy Report
BoE Monetary Policy Summary
BoE MPC Vote
US Core Personal Consumption Expenditures
UK Gross Domestic Product
US Initial Jobless Claims
US Personal Income
US Personal Spending
UK 100 companies going ex-dividend on 30th July 2026:
None
UK 250 companies going ex-dividend on 30th July 2026:
MONY Group
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