London open: Stocks make gains in quiet trade

(Sharecast News) - London stocks rose in early trade on Monday in what looked set to be a fairly quiet start to the week, with little in the way of either corporate or macro news to get markets moving.

At 0830 BST, the FTSE 100 was up 0.3% at 9,120.01.

Sentiment was boosted after US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he will meet Russian president Vladimir Putin in Alaska at the end of this week to negotiate an end to the war.

Meanwhile, there were no releases of note due on Monday, but Tuesday brings the latest UK jobs numbers, while in the US, consumer price inflation figures for July are due.

Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "There's a small surge of Monday motivation for the Footsie, with the index opening higher in early trade. A pulse of positivity also sent stocks on Wall Street back towards record levels on Friday and US indices are set for a higher open as optimism continues to swirl.

"But there could be a swift change in sentiment. The focus will be on US inflation numbers out this week, a key determiner for the Fed's interest rate decision next week. With Trump's tariffs set to make swathes of goods more expensive for American consumers and businesses, investors will want to see to if higher prices are landing and what the outlook is likely to be ahead."

She added: "There are hopes that Trump and Putin's meeting in Alaska later this week will help push the Ukraine conflict to a resolution, which is helping calm concerns over energy supply disruptions. Threats of extra tariffs on India, which buys Russian crude, pushed up oil prices, but they are in retreat amid expectations the meeting could pave the way for the lifting of sanctions on Russia.

"As traders mull the effect on global growing in the tariff era, forecasts for lower energy demand are also acting as a drag on prices, with Brent Crude hovering around $66 a barrel, the lowest in two months. Gold prices have also retreated a little amid hopes for an easing of geo-political tensions. But there is still uncertainty hanging around the market, surrounding concerns about gold bar imports into the US being taxed."

In equity markets, Diversified Energy rallied after solid second-quarter results.

On the downside, fintech business Plus500 tumbled even as it posted an uptick in first-half profit and revenue and said customer deposits more than doubled year-on-year.

Marshalls slumped as it reported a drop in first-half profit, slashed its dividend and said it does not expect any improvement in market activity levels through the remainder of 2025.

Outside the FTSE 350, Martin Sorrell's S4 Capital surged as it confirmed it has received a proposal from MSQ, a creative and technology agency owned by One Equity Partners, about a possible combination.

Responding to media speculation, the ad agency said discussions are at a "very preliminary" stage and there can be no certainty that a transaction will be forthcoming.

Gemfields also shot higher after agreeing to sell iconic luxury brand Faberg� to SMG Capital LLC for $50m. SMG Capital is a US-based investment company owned by tech entrepreneur and venture capital Sergei Mosunov.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 9,120.01 0.27%

FTSE 250 (MCX) 21,961.77 0.01%

techMARK (TASX) 5,229.57 -0.06%

FTSE 100 - Risers

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 378.80p 1.36%

Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (PSH) 4,062.00p 1.25%

AstraZeneca (AZN) 11,036.00p 1.04%

British American Tobacco (BATS) 4,272.00p 1.04%

Diageo (DGE) 2,042.00p 1.04%

Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,756.00p 0.92%

Glencore (GLEN) 290.90p 0.92%

Admiral Group (ADM) 3,380.00p 0.90%

IMI (IMI) 2,262.00p 0.89%

Beazley (BEZ) 914.00p 0.88%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

SSE (SSE) 1,764.00p -2.27%

Melrose Industries (MRO) 581.40p -1.62%

BAE Systems (BA.) 1,720.00p -1.01%

Babcock International Group (BAB) 948.50p -0.99%

CRH (CDI) (CRH) 8,098.00p -0.88%

Mondi (MNDI) 1,071.50p -0.70%

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 8,764.00p -0.68%

Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,065.00p -0.61%

Centrica (CNA) 164.45p -0.57%

Shell (SHEL) 2,638.50p -0.55%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Diversified Energy Company (DEC) 1,184.00p 8.13%

Rathbones Group (RAT) 1,968.00p 2.39%

Ashmore Group (ASHM) 179.40p 2.22%

Morgan Advanced Materials (MGAM) 202.00p 1.71%

JPMorgan Japanese Inv Trust (JFJ) 669.00p 1.52%

Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 187.70p 1.51%

RHI Magnesita N.V. (DI) (RHIM) 2,280.00p 1.33%

Inchcape (INCH) 659.00p 1.31%

Domino's Pizza Group (DOM) 208.40p 1.26%

4Imprint Group (FOUR) 3,220.00p 1.26%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Spectris (SXS) 4,012.00p -3.70%

Plus500 Ltd (DI) (PLUS) 3,308.00p -3.39%

Marshalls (MSLH) 199.60p -3.34%

Hochschild Mining (HOC) 301.00p -2.46%

QinetiQ Group (QQ.) 479.60p -1.84%

Ocado Group (OCDO) 389.70p -1.49%

Elementis (ELM) 167.40p -1.30%

CMC Markets (CMCX) 229.00p -1.29%

TBC Bank Group (TBCG) 4,750.00p -1.25%

BlackRock World Mining Trust (BRWM) 567.00p -1.22%