The FTSE 100 slipped on Thursday as escalating U.S.-Iran tensions cooled risk appetite and technology stocks weighed on the index. The blue-chip benchmark fell 0.2% to 10,492.99 points by 1038 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 rose 0.3% on a takeover-driven surge in Rotork.
London's FTSE 100 fell 0.2% to 10,492.99 points by 1038 GMT, as tensions between the U.S. and Iran dampened risk appetite and weakness in technology stocks added to the pressure. The blue-chip benchmark has shown little willingness to break out in either direction. It has remained in a tight range around 10,500, barring a few sessions towards the end of June.
Iran tensions and tech weakness drag the index
The selling followed a warning from Tehran. Iran said the Strait of Hormuz was an inviolable "red line", cautioning that if U.S. President Donald Trump carried out his threat to attack Iran's infrastructure, it would strike all infrastructure across the Gulf region.
Technology stocks led the losses. Data and technology firm Experian fell 2.3% after reporting in-line first-quarter results and maintaining its annual outlook, while peer Relx dropped 1%. UK Investor Magazine reported that fragile sentiment fed a continued pullback in memory chip stocks as investors fretted about elevated valuations.
Rotork lifts the midcaps as UK growth stays fragile
The midcap picture looked brighter. Rotork jumped 66.8% after Swiss engineering group ABB announced a $5.5 billion takeover of the British automation company, helping lift the FTSE 250. Not every mover rose, however: Ocado tumbled 18.8% to a 13-year low after failing to show tangible progress in talks to secure new U.S. partners.
Britain's economy meanwhile eked out minimal growth in May as the services industry expanded but other sectors shrank. According to Reuters, AJ Bell's Danni Hewson warned that the UK's high levels of debt make it "particularly vulnerable to further inflation shocks" from continued conflict in the Middle East.
Sources: Reuters, UK Investor Magazine
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