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| Yesterday’s UK 100 Leaders | Price (p) | % Chg |
| Croda International | 3,160.0 | 8.0% |
| Unilever | 4,998.0 | 8.0% |
| Experian | 2,981.0 | 6.3% |
| Compass Group | 32.9 | 5.9% |
| RELX | 2,832.0 | 5.6% |
| Yesterday’s UK 100 Laggards | Price (p) | % Chg |
| Barclays | 505.0 | -4.8% |
| Polar Capital Technology Trust | 610.5 | -3.0% |
| Centrica | 155.2 | -2.9% |
| Lion Finance Group | 11,440.0 | -2.8% |
| Diploma | 7,420.0 | -2.8% |
| Major World Indices | Price | % Chg | 1 Year |
| UK 100 INDEX | 10,871 | 0.8% | 19.7% |
| DOW JONES INDUS. AVG | 52,747 | 1.0% | 17.6% |
| DAX INDEX | 25,464 | 0.4% | 6.2% |
| NIKKEI 225 | 62,365 | 4.0% | 53.3% |
| S&P/ASX 200 INDEX | 8,948 | 0.6% | 2.8% |
| Commodity | Units | Price | % Chg |
| WTI Crude Oil (Nymex) | USD/bbl. | 82.81 | 4.48% |
| Brent Crude (ICE) | USD/bbl. | 84.09 | 4.83% |
| Gold Spot | USD/t oz. | 4,016 | 0.3% |
| Copper (Comex) | USd/lb. | 633 | 0.4% |
Click graph to enlarge
The UK 100 is called to open +29 points at at 10,900. Stocks in London are set to open slightly lower on Wednesday, while oil prices moved higher as hostilities in the Middle East resumed.
UK 100 futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open 29 points higher, at 10,900 on Wednesday. The index of London large-caps closed up 89.27 points, 0.8%, at 10,871.02 on Tuesday.
US and Saudi warplanes carried out strikes on Tuesday against Iran-backed militants in Iraq who launched more than two dozen drone attacks in recent days, the US military said. The strikes targeted “Iran-aligned terrorists that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps directed to attack US forces and Saudi energy infrastructure,” US Central Command said in a statement.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 was down 1.7% on Wednesday. In China, the Shanghai Composite was up 0.8%, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong shot up 1.3%. Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.0%.
Reckitt beat second-quarter sales growth estimates and reaffirmed its annual forecast on Wednesday, as strong demand in China, India and other emerging markets helped offset weakness in Europe and disruption linked to the Iran war. The consumer goods group, which makes Durex condoms and Finish cleaning products, also announced a new share buyback programme of up to £500 million ($664.9 million). Emerging markets have remained a key driver of growth for Reckitt and other consumer goods companies, including Unilever, helping cushion the impact of higher costs and supply-chain disruptions stemming from tensions in the Middle East. Reckitt continues to face several challenges, including the effects of Western sanctions on its Russian business, new taxes on condoms in China, and ongoing litigation against its baby formula business Mead Johnson. The company reported like-for-like net revenue growth of 4.2% in its core business for the quarter ended June 30, compared with the 3.6% forecast by analysts in a company-compiled poll.
Standard Chartered shot up 5.8% in Hong Kong. It hailed a “record first half performance”, announced a USD1.0 billion buyback and lifted guidance. It now expects operating income growth year-on-year for 2026 around the middle of its 5% to 7% range at constant currency and excluding “material notable items”. It previously expected growth towards the lower end of the range. First half pretax profit rose 9.1% to $4.78 billion from $4.38 billion, with operating income climbing 6.4% to $11.60 billion from $10.91 billion. In the second quarter alone, pretax profit rose 2.4% to $2.33 billion from $2.28 billion and operating income was 3.2% higher at $5.70 billion from $5.53 billion. Pretax profit beat consensus of $2.07 billion and operating income topped $5.55 billion forecast.
UK
Sage Group (SGE) – Q3 2026 Trading Update
Aberdeen Group (ABDN) – Half Year Results
Breedon Group (BREE) – Half Year Results
Rathbones Group (RAT) – Interim Results
Rio Tinto (RIO) – 2026 Half Year Results
St James’s Place (STJ) – Half year results
Standard Chartered (STAN) – Half year results
US
Aon Class A (NYSE:AON) PMO
Automatic Data Processing Inc (NASDAQ:ADP) PMO
Etsy Inc (NYSE:ETSY) PMO E
Fiverr International Ltd (NYSE:FVRR) PMO
Lemonade Inc Ordinary Shares (NYSE:LMND) PMO
Markel Group Inc (NYSE:MKL) PMO E
Procter & Gamble Co (NYSE:PG) PMO
ARM Holdings ADR (NASDAQ:ARM) AMC
Lam Research Corp (NASDAQ:LRCX) AMC
Meta Platforms Inc Class A (NASDAQ:META) AMC
Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) AMC
Qualcomm Inc (NASDAQ:QCOM) AMC
Robinhood Markets Inc Class A (NASDAQ:HOOD) AMC
Starbucks Corp (NASDAQ:SBUX) AMC
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
Fed Interest Rate Decision
Fed Monetary Policy Statement
FOMC Press Conference
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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