The FTSE 100 opened 17 points higher at 10,443 on Friday, steadying alongside broader European markets as investors balanced cautious optimism over a possible US-Iran ceasefire extension.
Meanwhile, Brent crude futures fell 1.17% to $92.61 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) advanced 1.27% to $87.77 a barrel. Sterling was at $1.3424 on Friday morning, down from $1.3435 at the London equities close on Thursday.
Gainers & Losers
Auto Trader Group led the gainers, rising 1.83% to £435, while Endeavour Mining advanced 1.61% to £4,481 and Convatec Group gained 1.56% to £201.40. Also, Barclays climbed 1.30% to £458.35, while International Consolidated Airlines Group added 1.27% to £432.10 and Airtel Africa moved higher by 1.16% to £348.40.
On the downside, British American Tobacco declined 1.57% to £4,633, while Diageo slipped 1.04% to £1,565.50 and Experian fell 0.78% to £2,555. Among other laggards, Games Workshop Group dropped 0.61% to £19,630, while Coca-Cola Europacific Partners eased 0.58% to £6,890 and Spirax Group edged lower by 0.36% to £6,965.
Banks Urged Rachel Reeves to Expand Lending Schemes
In a letter UK Finance said the banking industry body has called for the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves to green light a fivefold increase in the maximum loan available under the Growth Guarantee Scheme (GGS). The scheme allows firms with a turnover of up to £45 million to receive loans of up to £2 million, which are protected by a 70% government guarantee giving the lender a greater safety net.
Ocado Stock Jumps 13%
Ocado shares jumped 13% to £235 after a partnership announcement with Asda to overhaul the supermarket chain's e-commerce infrastructure.
Broker Peel Hunt said the deal 'ticks a lot of boxes' for investors concerned about Ocado's ability to secure new contracts after a prolonged period of negative sentiment. The partnership represents Ocado's first substantial entry into the UK online grocery market.
Asda, the UK's third-largest supermarket by market share with 11.5% of the sector, generated over £21 billion in sales in 2025 and currently processes over 700,000 e-commerce orders each week across its store and dark store network.
Final Thoughts: Global Market Outlook
In the US, the S&P 500 rose 0.6% and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.9%, while the Dow Jones edged up 0.1%. In Asia, the Kospi rose 3.55% to 8,476.15 points, while Japan's Nikkei 225 advanced 2.53%. Taiwan's TAIEX also jumped 2.51% to 44,732.94 points. In China, Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.72%.
At the same time, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.73%. India's Nifty 50 and Sensex both declined 0.57% and 0.43%, respectively. The market is showing signs of recovery amid US-Iran peace deal hopes. Investors should keep an eye on the Middle East developments as despite the hopes, an official announcement on the ceasefire remains.