London's FTSE 100 inches lower as Middle East concerns weigh
Market Performance and Key Sector Movements
FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 Index Overview
July 1 (Reuters) - The UK's blue-chip FTSE 100 slipped on Wednesday, with healthcare and energy shares leading declines, as investors monitored the latest setback in U.S.-Iran talks.
The internationally focused FTSE 100 index closed down 0.2%, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 jumped 1.4% to a one-week high.
Geopolitical Tensions Impact
U.S.-Iran Talks and Market Sentiment
• Iran said on Tuesday it would not meet top U.S. envoys, following an outbreak of hostilities that clouded the prospects of a peace agreement.
Sector Performance Breakdown
Healthcare and Energy Shares
• Healthcare shares dropped 1.6%, weighing on the blue-chip index, with heavyweights AstraZeneca and GSK down 1.7% and 2.5% respectively.
• Oil and gas shares also weighed, with Shell and BP dropping over 2% each on declining oil prices.
Precious Metals and Defence Sectors
• Precious metal mining shares rose 3.3%, keeping losses in check.
• Aerospace and defence shares extended gains from the prior session when Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged an extra £15 billion ($20 billion) of spending on defence. Babcock, BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce rose between 1.1% and 5.2%.
Economic Data and Company Movers
Manufacturing Activity
• PMI data showed that Britain's manufacturing activity cooled in June despite a boost from stockpiling ahead of price hikes and supply chain disruption worries.
Notable Stock Movements
AB Foods and Greggs
• Among individual movers, AB Foods dropped 3.1% after the Primark owner said it expects annual profit to be below last year's.
• Greggs fell 3% and was the top laggard on the mid-cap index after the UK's biggest fast-food chain said its long-time CFO Richard Hutton would step down.
National Grid Investment
• National Grid said it would invest $1.75 billion for a 35% stake in Joulent, a U.S. energy platform developing power infrastructure for data centres. Shares were down 3%.
Quarterly Performance Summary
• Both the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 notched quarterly gains. The mid-cap index posted its biggest quarterly rise in five quarters, while the blue-chip index ended higher in 11 of the last 12 months.
(Reporting by Twesha Dikshit; Editing by Shreya Biswas)
