UK stocks set for weekly declines as oil prices soar
EWU•EWU•EWU•EWU•UK stocks were set for weekly declines on Friday as Brent crude traded close to $114 a barrel, inflation concerns grew and investors assessed weaker retail sales and consumer confidence.
The FTSE 100 fell 0.5% to 10,670 points by 1020 GMT on Friday, while the FTSE 250 rose 0.1% but was set for its sharpest weekly fall in nearly six weeks. Elevated oil prices, growing bets on rate hikes and uncertainty ahead of next week’s budget weighed on the indexes.
Brent crude traded close to $114 a barrel, lifting energy shares 2%. Aerospace and defence shares fell 4.1%, with Rolls-Royce down 6.4%; banks lost 1% and healthcare shares fell 1.7%. Lancashire Holdings dropped 4% after Barclays cut its rating to “underweight” from “equal weight.”
UK retail sales volumes fell 0.4% in September from August, compared with economists’ expected 0.1% decline. Consumer confidence plunged in October, its steepest monthly fall since the pandemic. September price pressures increased more than expected, supporting expectations that a Bank of England rate hike in November is largely priced in.
