FTSE 100 movers: Defensives gain, cyclicals fall amid Trump tariff woes
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Monday 31 Mar 2025
(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was down 1.2% at 8,556.00 in afternoon trade on Monday.
Defensive stocks were the top gainers, with utilities Severn Trent and United Utilities, and consumer goods giants Unilever and Reckitt all higher.
Tobacco firms British American Tobacco and Imperial Brands also gained.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "Donald Trump continues to be the key reason why markets are having a bad day. He has now threatened to target all countries importing goods into the US with tariffs, further clouding economic prospects around the world. Investors raced for protection by buying gold and defensive stocks including tobacco manufacturers and utilities.
"When things are looking bleak, it's natural for investors to hide in certain parts of the market that either act as safe havens or industries whose demand should be unaffected by fluctuations in the economy."
On the downside, BA and Iberia owner IAG flew lower as Virgin Atlantic said that demand for travel from the US to the UK had slowed.
Heavily-weighted miners - cyclical stocks - were under pressure, with Anglo American, Glencore and Rio Tinto all down.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,523.00p 1.08%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,153.00p 0.93%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,844.00p 0.64%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,610.00p 0.50%
Next (NXT) 11,040.00p 0.45%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 5,248.00p 0.31%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 1,007.50p 0.30%
Haleon (HLN) 390.60p 0.18%
LondonMetric Property (LMP) 183.40p 0.16%
Rightmove (RMV) 688.80p 0.12%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 258.30p -7.52%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,151.50p -4.53%
Entain (ENT) 585.60p -4.38%
Glencore (GLEN) 280.35p -4.17%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) 1,942.00p -3.96%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 4,532.50p -3.89%
Spirax Group (SPX) 6,170.00p -3.82%
St James's Place (STJ) 972.50p -3.81%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 743.00p -3.66%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 69.34p -3.64%
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