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The FTSE 100 edged higher on Thursday Donald Trump It withdrew its threat to impose tariffs but lagged its European peers amid weakness in mining, energy and defense stocks.
The FTSE 100 index closed up 11.96 points, or 0.1%, at 10,150.05 points.
The FTSE 250 index closed up 299.64 points, or 1.3%, at 23,370.93 points. Purpose The stock closed up 9.08 points, or 1.1%, at 817.67 points.
U.S. President Trump said late Wednesday that he had reached a framework for a deal Greenland After meeting with NATO Chairman Mark Rutte and will waive planned tariffs on European allies.
“We have developed a framework for a future agreement on Greenland and the entire Arctic,” Trump said in an article published in Truth Social.
The US president did not provide any details about the framework, but added that the possibility of tariffs he threatened to impose on European countries that resisted his acquisition of Greenland was now gone.
“Tariff risks are now on the back burner and this week’s price action tells us that financial markets are worried about tariffs more than geopolitical risks,” said Kathleen Brooks, director of research at XTB.
Ms Brooks said there was still a long way to go before markets reversed this week’s overall losses, but noted that the sell-off in recent days had “brought volatility to financial markets but did not lead to a rout”.
This shows that investors are still “buying the dip” and that market fundamentals “remain strong.”
In European stock markets on Thursday, the Paris CAC 40 index closed up 1.0%, and the Frankfurt DAX 40 index closed up 1.2%.
Financial markets were higher in New York at the close in London.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9%, the S&P 500 gained 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.0%.
The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note was at 4.27%, unchanged from Wednesday. The U.S. 30-year Treasury bond yield was at 4.87%, narrowing from 4.89%.
Data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) showed that U.S. economic growth was slightly stronger than expected in the third quarter.
In the three months ended September 30, U.S. gross domestic product increased by 4.4% on an annualized basis. The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) had previously estimated growth at 4.3%.
“The increase in real GDP in the third quarter reflected increases in consumer spending, exports, government spending and investment. Imports, a subtraction in GDP calculations, declined,” the Bureau of Economic Analysis said.
At the close in London on Thursday, the pound was quoted at $1.3498, up from $1.3437 on Wednesday.
EURUSD was at $1.1749 and was trading higher at $1.1707. The USD/JPY exchange rate rose from 158.18 yen to 158.27 yen.
UK public sector net borrowing rose less than expected in December, data from London showed.
Net borrowing was 11.58 billion pounds in December, according to the Office for National Statistics, below the consensus estimate of 13.5 billion pounds cited by FXStreet.
Total net borrowing in December was higher than November’s net borrowing of 10.94 billion pounds, which was revised down from 11.65 billion pounds. But it is down 38% from December 2024.
Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell, said: “The sharp fall in government borrowing in December will provide some relief to the Treasury, especially as January’s figures are likely to look better as self-assessed income is expected to surge.”
Ms Hewson noted there had been a “slight increase” in spending compared with the previous year, mainly due to increases in benefit payments and wages, but this was offset by an increase in cash entering government coffers.
However, she noted that the picture for the full financial year so far was “not that positive”, with “total borrowings to the end of December reaching levels seen on the previous two occasions”.
“The deficit is reducing, but only very slowly. With further increases in benefit payments coming in April, pressures on public finances remain troubling,” Ms Hewson added.
In the FTSE 100, defense stocks BAE Systems and Babcock International fell 3.7% and 1.4% as geopolitical temperatures cooled.
Miners were another weak sector following recent gains. Antofagasta fell 2.2%, Glencore fell 2.0%, and Anglo American fell 1.7%.
A day after Goldman Sachs downgraded the company’s shares, RBC Capital Markets downgraded its rating to “sector perform” from “outperform” and the company’s shares fell a further 4.6%.
Weak oil prices sent BP down 1.9% and Shell down 2.2%.
Brent crude oil fell to $64.26 a barrel on Thursday, down from $64.82 late Wednesday.
Computacenter led the way in the FTSE 250, which rose 10% after better-than-expected trading in 2025.
The Hatfield, Hertfordshire-based services provider said business performance in the fourth quarter and full year 2025 exceeded expectations.
As a result, the FTSE 250 index member expects full-year adjusted pre-tax profits to be no less than 270 million pounds, “significantly ahead” of the company’s forecast of 253.6 million pounds. This would be a 6.3% increase from the £254m reported in 2024.
“This was a strong pre-announcement, with results beating expectations, an earnings upgrade on the horizon, and information on the pipeline and outlook encouraging,” JPMorgan analysts said.
Senior shares rose 8.8% after the company said it expected full-year adjusted pre-tax profit to be “well above previously expected”, raising guidance for the second time in three months.
The company, based in Royston, Hertfordshire, produces components and systems for aerospace and defence, land vehicle and power and energy customers.
It said trading since the November update had been “stronger than expected, particularly in the aerospace sector”.
Kitwave’s shares soared 33% on AIM after it accepted a £251m takeover bid from New York investment firm OEP Capital Advisers.
The cash bid values each share of the food wholesaler in North Shields, North Tyneside, at 295p.
Gold was at $4,874.80 an ounce on Thursday, another record high, up from $4,833.66 on Wednesday.
The biggest gainers on the FTSE 100 were: St James’s Place, up 62.5p to 1,511.0p; Hikma Pharmaceuticals, up 48.0p to 1,568.0p; JD Sports & Fashion, up 2.56p to 84.62p; Spirax, up 220.0p to 7,370.0 pence; and ConvaTec, up 7.0p to 236.6p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were: Admiral Group, down 136.0p to 2,812.0p; BAE Systems, down 77.0p to 1,985.0p; ICG, down 52.0p to 1,940.0p; Rio Tinto, down 155.0p to 6,486.0 Pence; Shell fell 59.5p to 2,674.0p.
Friday’s global economic calendar will feature a slew of composite PMI numbers, an overnight Japanese interest rate decision, and UK consumer confidence and retail sales data.
Friday’s UK corporate calendar features a trading statement from currency and asset manager Record.
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