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| Yesterday’s UK 100 Leaders | Price (p) | % Chg |
| Babcock International Group | 1,268.0 | 9.5% |
| Rolls Royce Holdings | 1,207.0 | 6.6% |
| 3i Group | 2,584.0 | 6.0% |
| Endeavour Mining | 4,720.0 | 5.8% |
| Fresnillo | 3,496.0 | 5.8% |
| Yesterday’s UK 100 Laggards | Price (p) | % Chg |
| Berkeley Group Holdings | 3,104.0 | -9.7% |
| BP | 576.0 | -5.0% |
| Shell | 3,443.5 | -3.9% |
| Rightmove | 422.9 | -1.4% |
| British American Tobacco | 4,313.0 | -1.3% |
| Major World Indices | Price | % Chg | 1 Year |
| UK 100 INDEX | 10,365 | 1.9% | 20.0% |
| DOW JONES INDUS. AVG | 46,566 | 0.5% | 11.1% |
| DAX INDEX | 23,299 | 2.7% | 3.4% |
| NIKKEI 225 | 53,740 | 5.2% | 50.4% |
| S&P/ASX 200 INDEX | 8,672 | 2.2% | 9.3% |
| Commodity | Units | Price | % Chg |
| WTI Crude Oil (Nymex) | USD/bbl. | 99.54 | 1.81% |
| Brent Crude (ICE) | USD/bbl. | 100.90 | 2.95% |
| Gold Spot | USD/t oz. | 4,764 | 2.0% |
| Copper (Comex) | USd/lb. | 563 | 0.2% |
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The UK 100 is called to open -94 points at at 10,270. Stocks in London are set to open lower on Thursday, after US President Donald Trump’s nationwide address broke little new ground on ending the Iran war. Promising another two to three weeks further of “extremely hard” strikes, Trump said the US was aiming to crush Iran’s military, end its support for regional armed groups and prevent it from obtaining a nuclear bomb, and said those “core strategic objectives are nearing completion”. He again threatened that if Iran does not reach a negotiated settlement with him, the US would “hit each and every one of their electric generating plants.” Further, Trump has said countries which rely on the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping lane for oil should “build up some delayed courage” and “just grab it”. The US president also said after the Iran conflict was over, the critical waterway would “just open up naturally”.
U.S. stock futures fell on Thursday morning after President Donald Trump indicated that the Iran war would continue. S&P 500 futured declined 1.26%, and Nasdaq futures lost 1.63%. Futures tied to the Dow Jones slid 507 points, or about 1.08%. Trump delivered an address Wednesday night, providing updates on the Middle East conflict. Though he said that the U.S. is “getting very close” to ending the Iran war, Trump added that the nation would “hit” Tehran “extremely hard.” “Over the next two to three weeks, we’re going to bring them back to the stone ages where they belong,” the president said.
A sharp reversal from Wednesday, where oil prices declined to start the month, as hope grew that an end to the U.S.-Iran war was on the horizon. The S&P advanced 0.72% and closed at 6,575.32, and the Nasdaq gained 1.16% and settled at 21,840.95. The Dow Jones added 224.23 points, or 0.48%, to end at 46,565.74.
In Asia this morning, The KOSPI slumped 3.87% to around 5,268 on Thursday, reversing the previous session’s gains as renewed geopolitical concerns rattled investors. The South Korean won depreciated past 1,520 per dollar, its lowest since March 2009. The Japanese Nikkei fell 2.65% to around 52,700, while the broader Topix Index slipped 0.9% to 3,600 on Thursday. The Japanese yen slipped to around 159.2 per dollar on Thursday.
China’s stock markets fell 0.85% , and the offshore yuan weakened to around 6.88 per dollar, ending a three-day winning streak. The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) withdrew cash from the financial system for the first time in a year, a cautious signal that keeps its policy options open as higher oil prices filter through the economy, as reported by Bloomberg.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.46% to 25,082 on Thursday, extending losses for a second straight session. The Sensex in India fell 1.95% to below 71,700 on Thursday, after a strong 1.8% gain in the previous session. The Indian rupee edged down to around 93.2 per dollar, extending gains for another session.
Lloyds Bank this morning said Further to the recent FCA announcement on the final rules for an industry wide redress scheme for motor finance, the Group has now undertaken an assessment of the implications and impact of the final rules. Further to this analysis the Group does not currently believe any change to the provision for this issue is required. There remain a number of uncertainties including response rates, operational costs and any litigation. The ultimate outcome may also differ dependent upon potential actions by various parties, including legal proceedings and complaints. An update will be provided as appropriate with the first quarter results at the end of April. The Group remains committed to ensuring customers receive appropriate and timely redress.
UK
None
US
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UK
Bank Holiday
US
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EU Economic Bulletin
US Challenger Job Cuts
US Initial Jobless Claims
UK 100 companies going ex-dividend on 2nd April 2026:
Barratt Redrow
IMI
Smiths Group
UK 250 companies going ex-dividend on 2nd April 2026:
Taylor Wimpey
OSB Group
Domino’s Pizza Group
Chesnara
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