UK Stock Market Rallies for Fourth Consecutive Week as Miners Surge
Market Performance and Key Drivers
Weekly Gains in UK Indexes
Aug 7 (Reuters) - The main UK indexes were on track for a fourth consecutive week of gains on Friday, as a rally in precious metal miners helped offset worries about a lasting peace agreement between the United States and Iran.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 rose 0.6% to 10,933.67 points by 1009 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 added 0.3% to 24,771.10 points. Both were on track for weekly gains, with the midcap index set for its biggest weekly gain since mid-April.
Miners Lead the Rally
• UK-listed shares of Hochschild, Fresnillo and Endeavour Mining rallied in the range of 2.5% to 8.3%, as gold prices jumped against a sluggish dollar. [GOL/]
Oil Prices and Geopolitical Concerns
• Meanwhile, fresh concerns surrounding the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and potential Iranian bans and fines on vessels it deems hostile kept oil prices supported. [O/R]
Investor Focus and Economic Indicators
Upcoming U.S. Payrolls Report
• Investors will closely watch U.S. monthly non-farm payrolls report at 1230 GMT for signs on the health of the U.S. labour market as well as monetary policy trajectory.
Interest Rate Expectations
• Traders expected the U.S. Federal Reserve to hike interest rates by 25 basis points at least once this year, while placing the odds of a second such hike by the end of the year at 33%, as per LSEG data.
Sector Highlights
UK Housing Market
Slowing Growth and Rate Hikes
• Britain's housing market slowed in July in both monthly and annual price rise terms as higher borrowing costs and uncertainty caused by the Iran war overshadowed the market, mortgage lender Lloyds said.
• Investors were fully pricing in a quarter-point increase in the main bank rate in December. The Bank of England kept interest rates on hold last week, flagging that it needed more time for a sense of how much the war in the Middle East would push up inflation.
• The UK's housing stocks index dipped 0.6%.
Midcap Movers
Oxford Biomedica and Goodwin
• Among midcap stocks, Oxford Biomedica tumbled 18% after the cell and gene therapy manufacturer cut its 2026 revenue forecast, citing operational delays at a U.S. site and deferred client orders.
• Engineering company Goodwin gained 10% as it said it was exploring a potential sale of parts of its mechanical engineering business as it embarks on a broader strategic review.
(Reporting by Anand Gopal and Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair)
