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The FTSE 100 ended little changed on Tuesday, remaining close to recent record highs, supported by the well-received update. shell And Imperial Brands,
The FTSE 100 index closed just 4.44 points higher at 9,483.58. Earlier it had traded at a high of 9,507.11.
The FTSE 250 fell 96.94 points, 0.4%, to 22,002.80, and Objective The all-share closed just 0.69 points higher, 0.1%, at 796.32.
In European equities on Tuesday, both the CAC 40 in Paris and the DAX 40 in Frankfurt rose marginally.
French financial markets remained steady after a volatile day on Monday following the resignation of Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu.
Paul Donovan, chief economist at UBS Global Wealth Management, said: “Despite the obvious similarities, this is not the same as the UK Truce debacle. The French bond market remains orderly. French assets will command a risk premium, as investors wait to see whether the outcome will be a new government or new elections.”
Goldman Sachs I said the events France has increased its confidence in two features of its forecast.
First, the broker expects growth in France to run below trend and also sees little progress in reducing the government deficit.
Gold was trading at $3,985.98 an ounce on Tuesday, higher than $3,957.68 on Monday, as investors eyed the US government shutdown, with Republicans and Democrats appearing no closer to an agreement.
Bets on an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve this month and the political crisis in France are increasing the attractiveness of safe-haven assets.
“The gold rally is part of the ‘debasement’ trade,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.
“This trading theme is driving demand for alternative assets like gold and crypto, as the dollar faces a long-term decline and fiscal concerns rise around the world,” he said.
Goldman Sachs raised its December 2026 gold price forecast to $4,900 an ounce from $4,300 previously, to reflect Western exchange-traded fund flows and potential central bank purchases.
At the close of the London equities market on Tuesday, the pound fell to $1.3440, down from $1.3471 on Monday. The euro stood at $1.1672, compared with $1.1706. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at 151.02 yen, higher than 150.07 yen.
Stocks were lower in New York at the time of London close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.2%, the S&P 500 index was 0.4% lower and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.7%.
The yield on US 10-year Treasuries was reported at 4.13%, down from 4.16% on Monday. The yield on US 30-year Treasuries fell to 4.73% from 4.76%.
On the FTSE 100, Rentokil Initial gained 3.9% after a double upgrade from “underperform” to “outperform” from Bernstein.
Analyst Will Kirkness notes “signs of impacting organic revenue growth” and believes Rentokil “could enjoy structural growth in line with the industry combined with ongoing consolidation”.
Bernstein believes organic growth could improve to 3% to 4% as the market remains supportive and strategic investments are paying off.
Imperial Brands rose 3.4% in line trading as well after announcing a bigger-than-expected share buyback.
The Bristol-based tobacco products maker, which owns the Golden Virginia and Rizla brands, said the £1.45 billion share buyback, up from £1.25 billion in fiscal 2025, will be completed by October 28, 2026.
Citi analyst Simon Hales, who called the update “reassuring”, said the share buyback is larger than the consensus forecast of £1.30 billion to £1.35 billion and should be enough to provide some short-term support for the stock after recent weakness.
Shell was also in the green, rising 1.5% after its trading update.
The London-listed energy major forecast stronger gas trading and higher upstream output in the third quarter, raising expectations of an earnings report later this month.
Shell said its Integrated Gas division’s earnings grew rapidly between July and September, and as a result trading and optimization results from the segment are expected to be “significantly higher” than the previous quarter, supported by increased liquefied natural gas volumes.
“The (third quarter) update is a useful reminder that Shell’s operating performance remains strong with a growing LNG portfolio and ongoing restructuring across key divisions,” analysts at RBC Capital Markets said.
Tesco and J Sainsbury’s, both down 0.7%, were a weak feature as sector rival Asda announced price cuts, rekindling fears of a price war.
Mondi fell a further 4.1% after Monday’s profit warning.
Holding back the FTSE 250, B&M European Value Retail fell 7.7% after it warned full-year earnings would fall short of expectations.
The Luxembourg-based variety store chain in the UK and France said B&M UK like-for-like sales declined 1.1% in the second quarter ended Sept. 27, weaker than its expectations, and below the Visible Alpha consensus, which had forecast a 0.4% decline.
For the full financial year, B&M expects adjusted EBITDA of between £510 million and £560 million, which would be 14% lower than GBP620 million last year at the mid-point, and 12% below the VA consensus of £606 million.
In response, B&M said it was taking “decisive action” to correct the operational weaknesses identified.
Chief executive Tjerd Gegen, who joined B&M in June, said the action plan, “B&M Back to Basics”, would focus on returning the UK business to equally sustainable growth.
“This is our absolute priority. We have already sharpened our value positioning, and we are moving quickly to refocus our range, improve on-shelf availability and bring excitement back into our stores,” he said.
Shore Capital analyst David Hughes said a “reset” in margins through lower prices was necessary for the business to deliver the returns required for similar volume growth.
“While these investments will put pressure on gross margins, we feel such a price reset is necessary to improve price differentiation against competitors and provide a reason to shop at B&M.”
Brent oil traded at $65.28 a barrel on Tuesday, down from $65.43 late Monday.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Rentokil Initials, up 15.4p at 409.9p, Imperial Brands, up 101p at 3,105p, Burberry, up 36.5p at 1,238.5p, Beazley, up 25p at 925.5p, and British American Tobacco, up 69p. At 3,854p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Antenne, down 56.8p at 812.00p, Mondi, down 42.4p at 837.2p, JD Sports Fashion, down 2.5p at 102p, Spirax Group, down 165p at 7,120p and Babcock International, down 28p. At 1,253p.
Contributed by Alliance News