(Sharecast News) - London stocks had dipped into the red by midday on Friday but were faring better than their European counterparts thanks to minimal exposure to the technology sector, as the global tech selloff deepened.
The FTSE 100 was down 0.1% at 10,565.86, while Brent crude was up 1.8% at $85.72 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate was 2.2% higher at $80.65.
The top-flight index was outperforming its European peers, however, with the benchmark Stoxx 600 index and the German DAX both down 0.5%, while France's CAC 40 fell 0.7%. European chip makers ASML, Infineon Technologies and STMicroelectronics all saw their shares slump.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said the FTSE 100's contingent of defensive utilities and tobacco stocks, as well as its big energy names were lending a hand "when many of its global counterparts are stuck in the mud".
"The news from the Middle East suggests that a restoration of the fragile peace in the region is some way off. Oil prices remain elevated, although have not yet threatened the $100 per barrel levels seen earlier this year," he said. "However, the renewed surge in energy markets is creating concern that the recent moderation in inflation will prove short-lived.
"With sentiment brittle, investors are becoming increasingly wary of valuations in the AI and technology sector - most notably in the memory chip space where share prices have surged to unprecedented levels this year.
"This is particularly evident in Asian markets, which have also had to absorb weak Chinese growth figures this week and which are particularly exposed to disruptions to global energy supply."
Investors were also mulling the latest quarter results from Netflix, whose shares tumbled in after-hours trading after the streaming giant's third-quarter revenue guidance disappointed.
Russ Mould said: "Second-quarter numbers more or less hit expectations but the third-quarter forecast implies the weakest revenue growth in three years and just feeds into concerns about competition and the long-term strategy following its failed attempt to buy Warner Bros Discovery."
In UK equity markets, luxury brand Burberry slid as it reported a 5% rise in first-quarter sales driven by strong performances in the Americas and China which offset a decline in Europe and the Middle East due to the Iran war.
Sales in the 13 weeks to 27 June came in at 455m. Burberry said it expected to deliver full-year revenue growth and margin expansion but was still "mindful of the uncertain geopolitical and macro-economic environment and its potential impact on consumer confidence".
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said the dip in the shares "is further proof that there are those who remain unconvinced of a turnaround".
"Even so, if momentum is maintained as evidenced by the last few trading updates, there will be increasing upward pressure on a market consensus which currently stands at a hold, albeit a strong one," he added.
Investment manager NinetyOne slipped as it said assets under management had hit 184bn as of 30 June, up from 139.7bn a year earlier and 171.8bn at the end of the previous quarter on 31 March.
Eurowag tumbled after TA Associates sold 30 million shares in the payments processor in a placing.
On the upside, defensives were the top performers, with British American Tobacco, Imperial Brands, and utilities National Grid, Severn Trent, SSE and United Utilities also higher.
Shell and BP rose in tandem with oil prices, while Bridgepoint shot up as it posted a 12.4% jump in half-year assets under management and a 32.7% increase fee paying AUM.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,565.86 -0.06%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 23,615.31 -0.42%
techMARK (TASX) 5,892.28 -0.55%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Vodafone Group (VOD) 119.65p 3.27%
Severn Trent (SVT) 3,068.00p 3.22%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 4,627.00p 2.63%
BT Group (BT.A) 197.95p 2.53%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,872.00p 2.50%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 1,381.00p 2.44%
National Grid (NG.) 1,245.00p 2.42%
SSE (SSE) 2,475.00p 2.26%
Shell (SHEL) 3,225.50p 2.20%
Admiral Group (ADM) 3,634.00p 1.90%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,057.00p -5.31%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 3,457.00p -3.60%
GSK (GSK) 1,884.50p -3.58%
Anglo American (AAL) 3,371.00p -3.13%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 1,373.50p -2.59%
Autotrader Group (AUTO) 503.60p -2.25%
Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 7,946.00p -1.76%
Metlen Energy & Metals (MTLN) 43.04p -1.65%
Barclays (BARC) 516.20p -1.64%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 111.05p -1.55%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Ocado Group (OCDO) 168.50p 6.16%
Hays (HAS) 55.50p 4.43%
Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) (BPT) 327.20p 4.20%
Partners Group Private Equity Limited. (EUR) (PEY) 7.58p 3.27%
Pagegroup (PAGE) 165.20p 2.99%
RIT Capital Partners (RCP) 2,570.00p 2.60%
Ithaca Energy (ITH) 237.60p 2.50%
Harbour Energy (HBR) 230.60p 2.48%
Pennon Group (PNN) 498.60p 2.38%
Mondi (MNDI) 752.00p 2.03%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
W.A.G Payment Solutions (EWG) 99.80p -7.59%
Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 359.20p -6.36%
Raspberry PI Holdings (RPI) 688.25p -5.05%
Seraphim Space Investment Trust (SSIT) 149.60p -4.68%
Fidelity Emerging Markets Limited Ptg NPV (FEML) 1,356.00p -4.10%
The Schiehallion Fund Limited NPV (MNTN) 1.94p -3.96%
Pacific Horizon Inv Trust (PHI) 1,022.00p -3.93%
Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) 111.30p -3.88%
Oxford Biomedica (OXB) 622.00p -3.85%
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust (USA) 313.50p -3.54%
2.36 (0.02%)
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