The FTSE 100 opened 82.97 points lower at 10,798.93 amid a US technology sell-off over AI valuations, which weighed on Europe. Brent crude futures fell 2.60% to USD 107 per barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) declined 1.81% to USD 99.57 per barrel.
Sterling traded at USD 1.3333 early Monday, down slightly from USD 1.3339 at the time of the London equities close on Friday. Against the euro, it rose to EUR 1.1868 from EUR 1.1860.
Gainers & Losers
On the upside, Compass Group rose 0.86% to $32.84, while London Stock Exchange Group advanced 0.84% to 8,842.00p. RELX gained 0.79% to 2,937.00p, and Sage Group climbed 0.76% to 1,130.50p. Pershing Square Holdings increased 0.68% to 3,828.00p, while Pearson added 0.51% to 1,381.50p.
On the downside, AstraZeneca fell 1.13% to 12,306.00p, while Lion Finance Group declined 1.03% to 12,450.00p. 3i Group slipped 4.25% to 2,363.00p, and Games Workshop Group dropped 0.59% to 16,890.00p. Anglo American decreased 2.37% to 3,951.00p, while Next lost 0.52% to 15,300.00p.
GSK Lung Cancer Drug Shows 61% Response Rate
GSK said its lung cancer treatment risvutatug rezetecan produced a 61% response rate at the higher dose tested in an early-stage global trial of patients with relapsed extensive-stage small cell lung cancer.
The pharmaceutical group said 11 of 18 evaluable patients receiving an 8 milligram per kilogram dose responded to treatment, compared with seven of 22 patients, or 32%, receiving the lower 6 milligram dose.
Ris-Rez is an antibody-drug conjugate, a treatment designed to deliver cancer-killing drugs directly to tumour cells by targeting the B7-H3 protein, which is found at high levels across several solid tumour types.
LondonMetric’s Property Portfolio Remains Flat
British landlord LondonMetric Property said the value of its property portfolio remained flat over the six months to end-September even as five-year swap rates rose by about 50 basis points, supported by net rental income growth of over 8% to around GBP 240 million.
LondonMetric said it was on track to meet analysts’ consensus for 2027 financial-year earnings per share of 13.9p. It raised its first-quarter dividend by 3.3% to 3.15p and expects to declare the same for the second quarter, which would mark a 12th consecutive year of dividend growth. Based on analysts’ consensus dividend of 12.8p, it offers a prospective yield of 7.1%.
Mulberry Sales Boost
Luxury bagmaker Mulberry said its turnaround is in progress amid strong US sales despite a “challenging” environment.
The London-listed group posted 28% like-for-like sales growth in the US, as sales jumped by 23 and 10% in Europe and the UK.
Mulberry said it is taking a “disciplined approach” to its turnaround, by prioritising full-price sales over discounting. “There remains much more to achieve as part of our strategic plan, and we are operating in a challenging trading environment,” said chief executive Andrea Baldo.
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Global Market View
In US, Nasdaq 100 futures added 1.32%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures ticked 0.53% higher, or 278 points. S&P 500 futures gained 0.2%.
In Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 fell 0.46% to 65,026, while China’s Shanghai Composite edged up by 0.39%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.52%, and South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.76%. In India, both the Nifty 50 and the Sensex advanced by 1.10% and 1.07%, respectively.