(Sharecast News) - London stocks had edged lower by midday on Friday, with gold miners under the cosh as the yellow metal retreated from recent highs.
The FTSE 100 was down 0.2% at 9,495.59.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "The FTSE 100 was stuck in the mud as the rest of Europe ploughed ahead at the end of the trading week.
"Strength in consumer stocks and utilities was offset by weakness in miners and healthcare.
"Gold miners sold off as investors took some profits following the storming run for the metal price. There was bound to be a pullback at some point given gold's rapid ascent.
"It was also notable that defence stocks were being sold down, including Babcock which has rocketed this year.
"When there's doom and gloom in the world, investors often go through brief periods where they crystalise gains. The key question is whether that money will get recycled into other areas, which could easily happen if equity markets continue to push higher, or if people are starting to build a war chest so they can go bargain hunting if we do get a market correction."
Investors were also mulling the latest data from the British Retail Consortium, which showed that weak consumer confidence and uncertainty arising from the upcoming Autumn Budget prompted a steeper drop in footfall across the UK's high streets.
According to the monthly BRC-Sensormatic Footfall Monitor, overall footfall fell by 1.8% year-on-year last month, worse than the 0.4% annual decline posted in August.
In equity markets, precious metals miner Fresnillo and gold miners Hochschild and Endeavour all fell as gold prices pulled back from recent highs.
Building products manufacturer Ibstock tumbled as it reported weaker-than-expected demand in its core construction markets during the third quarter amid a "more uncertain near-term backdrop".
Ibstock said both clay and concrete revenues were impacted, with second-half sales volumes and adjusted underlying earnings now anticipated to match the first half due to softer market conditions.
Aviva was weaker after a downgrade to 'underperform' at KBW.
On the upside, Sage Group was the top performer on the FTSE 100 after Citi placed the shares on 'positive catalyst watch' into full-year results in November, saying it expects a better-than-feared update.
Recruitment firm Hays gained after saying it experienced the typical recovery in post-summer activity in its first quarter, but expects ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty to weigh on its performance over the remainder of the year.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 9,495.59 -0.15%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 22,000.47 -0.24%
techMARK (TASX) 5,595.81 -0.37%
FTSE 100 - Risers
The Sage Group (SGE) 1,145.00p 2.97%
Compass Group (CPG) 2,581.00p 2.14%
Diageo (DGE) 1,829.00p 2.09%
Metlen Energy & Metals (MTLN) 47.53p 1.88%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,490.00p 1.56%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 8,864.00p 1.37%
Games Workshop Group (GAW) 14,810.00p 1.37%
Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 18,660.00p 1.28%
Bunzl (BNZL) 2,452.00p 1.16%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,664.00p 1.14%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Fresnillo (FRES) 2,330.00p -2.67%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 624.00p -2.62%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,127.50p -2.38%
BAE Systems (BA.) 1,968.00p -2.33%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,229.00p -1.99%
Rightmove (RMV) 687.00p -1.49%
Aviva (AV.) 672.00p -1.35%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 407.80p -1.21%
Shell (SHEL) 2,748.00p -1.03%
Prudential (PRU) 1,014.50p -1.02%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 61.65p 5.29%
Hays (HAS) 60.70p 5.29%
Bakkavor Group (BAKK) 219.50p 3.05%
THG (THG) 38.26p 2.90%
Foresight Solar Fund Limited (FSFL) 77.20p 2.39%
Vietnam Enterprise Investments (DI) (VEIL) 786.00p 2.08%
ICG Enterprise Trust (ICGT) 1,510.00p 1.75%
Trustpilot Group (TRST) 216.80p 1.69%
Harworth Group (HWG) 165.00p 1.54%
Anglo-Eastern Plantations (AEP) 1,370.00p 1.48%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Ibstock (IBST) 125.60p -6.13%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 350.00p -4.00%
Ithaca Energy (ITH) 192.60p -3.60%
Marshalls (MSLH) 167.20p -3.58%
Endeavour Mining (EDV) 3,086.00p -2.89%
Breedon Group (BREE) 336.80p -2.77%
JPMorgan Japanese Inv Trust (JFJ) 686.00p -2.70%
Senior (SNR) 193.20p -2.42%
QinetiQ Group (QQ.) 498.20p -2.31%
Harbour Energy (HBR) 203.80p -2.30%
81.93 (0.86%)
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