London close: Footsie hits five-month high, but upside limited
By Benjamin Chiou
Date: Wednesday 29 Jul 2026
(Sharecast News) - London's blue chip index neared record highs on Wednesday afternoon after four straight days of gains, though a weak start on Wall Street zapped gains ahead of a number of key risk events.
"The atmosphere is febrile in markets this afternoon ahead of a decision from the Fed, big tech earnings and the likelihood of fresh US strikes on Iran," said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG.
"The tension can be felt across the globe, exemplified by gold slipping through $4000 and a brutal reversal for the Dow, previously a safe haven in US indices amidst the rout in global chip stocks. The reasons to hunker down and sit out August in cash are manifold."
The FTSE 100 finished 0.3% higher at 10,908.41, though firmly below its intraday high of 10,951.06. Still, this was the index's highest close since the record highs of late February before hostilities between the US and Iran broke out.
US markets fell sharply after the opening bell as investors braced for a Federal Reserve meeting, at which policymakers are expected to hold rates steady but signal that a hike could come in the coming months to fight inflationary pressures. A wave of disappointing corporate earnings also hit sentiment, along with another sell-off in the tech sector.
Indices across Europe were in the red, while London's Footsie is relatively insulated from sharp swings in the tech sector due to the heavy weighting of defensive and cyclical stocks.
Oil prices were climbing sharply once again, snapping a three-day losing streak, after Iran surprised Washington with a missile attack on US forces in Jordan, ending the recent, brief pause in fighting between the two nations.
In response, US president Donald Trump said that Iran were "going to get a beating" in retaliation for the attack. Brent was up 6.8% at $87.69 a barrel by the close in London.
On home shores, data from the Bank of England showed that mortgage approvals edged higher in June. The latest monthly Money and Credit report showed that net mortgage approvals for house purchases rose to 58,200 from 56,600 in May. Net borrowing of mortgage debt rose to £7.7bn from £3.3bn in May, coming in above the previous six-month average of £4.9bn.
Weir Group tops risers, Aberdeen sinks
Weir Group surged to the top of the index as it hailed strong second-quarter orders and improved momentum.
The Sage Group was also a high riser as it reported an 11% jump in revenue for the first nine months of the year, with growth across the group driven by new and existing customers.
Miners Glencore and Rio Tinto both advanced following a half-year production report and first-half results, respectively.
Reckitt Benckiser rallied as the consumer goods giant launched a new £500m share buyback as second-quarter sales accelerated to drive a "good" first-half performance.
Standard Chartered rose as it announced the launch of a $1bn share buyback, lifted its full-year income target and posted better-than-expected first-half profit. In the six months to the end of June, pre-tax profit jumped to a record $4.8bn from $4.4bn in the same period a year earlier, beating analysts' expectations of $4.5bn.
BP and Shell gushed higher in tandem with oil prices.
Aberdeen was under the cosh despite posting a rise in first-half profit and record net inflows at Interactive Investor.
On the FTSE 250, Greggs rallied as the bakery chain reported a rise in first-half profit and sales despite subdued consumer confidence, pointing to growth in the grocery business and strong cost control.
Lancashire Holdings slumped after reporting a rise in first-half profit on Wednesday as a quieter loss environment and disciplined underwriting helped improve its combined ratio.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,908.41 0.34%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 23,996.81 -0.03%
techMARK (TASX) 6,138.65 -0.54%
FTSE 100 - Risers
The Sage Group (SGE) 1,022.00p 8.75%
Weir Group (WEIR) 2,744.00p 8.72%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 5,400.00p 4.33%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,193.00p 3.65%
BP (BP.) 543.50p 3.39%
Experian (EXPN) 3,077.00p 3.36%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 443.30p 2.95%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 2,157.00p 2.86%
Glencore (GLEN) 520.70p 2.84%
Shell (SHEL) 3,323.50p 2.75%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Abrdn (ABDN) 238.00p -4.26%
Diploma (DPLM) 7,110.00p -4.18%
IMI (IMI) 2,860.00p -3.96%
Halma (HLMA) 3,410.00p -3.40%
Fresnillo (FRES) 2,481.00p -3.20%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 432.50p -2.94%
SEGRO (SGRO) 970.00p -2.75%
Investec (INVP) 629.00p -2.71%
Lion Finance Group (BGEO) 11,140.00p -2.62%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 347.40p -2.47%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Greggs (GRG) 2,002.00p 18.46%
W.A.G Payment Solutions (EWG) 107.80p 4.86%
Baltic Classifieds Group (BCG) 209.60p 4.80%
Bodycote (BOY) 723.50p 4.40%
Harbour Energy (HBR) 240.20p 4.34%
Ithaca Energy (ITH) 238.00p 4.29%
Inchcape (INCH) 856.00p 3.69%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 195.00p 3.45%
Diversified Energy Company (DI) (DEC) 981.00p 3.26%
Mony Group (MONY) 213.00p 3.20%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Lancashire Holdings Limited (LRE) 616.50p -6.59%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 2,654.00p -6.53%
Renishaw (RSW) 4,780.00p -5.63%
Shawbrook Group (SHAW) 338.50p -5.45%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,040.00p -4.32%
Coats Group (COA) 81.35p -3.78%
Volution Group (FAN) 606.00p -3.66%
Hill and Smith (HILS) 2,855.00p -3.55%
Unite Group (UTG) 533.00p -3.44%
Keller Group (KLR) 2,992.00p -3.36%
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