The FTSE 100 plunged at the open to 10,267, down 102 points as it resumed trading after yesterday's close. The sentiment remains cautious due to global uncertainty, as oil prices remain above $110, which raises inflation concerns.
Meanwhile, Brent Crude trades at $114.2 with a 0.42% decline after yesterday's nearly 6% gains. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) stands at $104.7, down 1.61%.
Gainers & Losers
Intertek Group surged 6.62% to £7,394.88, while BT Group advanced 6.41% to £230.65 and Sage Group gained 2.67% to £915.40.
Auto Trader also climbed 2.43% to £506.20, while Compass Group added 2.37% to $28.92 and Rightmove edged up 2.28% to £439.10.
On the downside, Games Workshop declined 1.35% to £6,631.95, while Rio Tinto fell 1.89% to £7,251 and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners dropped 1.64% to £6,880.
Among others, Fresnillo slipped 2.58% to £3,171, while Lion Finance eased 1.75% to £10,660 and Unilever declined 1.78% to £4,328.50.
Intertek Shares Surge
Intertek jumped after private equity firm EQT submitted an improved £58 per share cash proposal to acquire the company.
The Swedish firm values the testing and inspection group at a 54% premium to its closing price of £37.70 on 9 April, before the initial bid was made.
Intertek, which had also launched a strategic review, previously rejected a £54 per share proposal last month.
HSBC Drops 5%
HSBC dropped over 5% to £1,288 in early trade, leaving it up 8% in the year so far after missing its first-quarter profit target. The firm recorded a pre-tax profit of $9.4 billion (£6.5 billion), missing the $9.6 billion forecast by analysts.
"The problem was underlying top-line strength got eaten up before it reached the bottom line. Credit losses were heavier than expected, including a fraud-related charge in the UK and extra caution around the Middle East outlook, while costs also ran above consensus as performance pay, inflation and technology spending bit into profits. That left reported profit a touch light, even though underlying returns remained robust and capital landed exactly where expected," said Matt Britzman, a senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Global Market View
In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 1.13% to close at 48,941.90. The S&P 500 slid 0.41% to end at 7,200.75, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.19% to settle at 25,067.80.
In Asia, Taiwan's Taiex gained 0.1% to 40,769.2 points, as the index continues to be fueled by semiconductor stocks. Mainland China's CSI 300 fell 0.06%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.1%. Shanghai Composite recovered from morning losses to gain 0.1%.
Both Indian markets tumbled into the red, with the Sensex falling 0.9% and the Nifty 50 falling 0.7%, facing pressure from continued selling by foreign institutional investors and a weaker rupee.