London’s FTSE 100 opened lower on Tuesday as investors mulled a mixed bag of company results from the index’s constituents. In the first 40 minutes of trading, the blue-chip index fell two-thirds of a percent to 8,236.
Oil giant BP saw its shares lift higher after it posted second-quarter results showing larger profits than forecast and a bumper combination of dividends and share buybacks. Based on current oil and gas prices, BP said it plans share buybacks of "at least $14 billion through 2025".
Headed the other way was drinks giant Diageo after it confirmed a drop in annual sales and profits. Group sales declined due to a drop in volumes, mostly driven by a plunge in Latin America and the Caribbean, while North American sales were also down.
Another group attempting to lift the index higher was Standard Chartered, with the lender having posted a profit beat in the second quarter and a hike to its shareholder returns. The lender announced its biggest-ever share buyback of $1.5 billion, which was 50% larger than analysts expected, and also proposed a 50% hike to its interim dividend.
And Sage Group traded lower following a deceleration in organic revenue growth compared to 2023 and a warning about the wider industry backdrop.