- FTSE down 54 points at 9,649
- UK GDP slips 0.1% in October
- Silver touches a new high
4.55pm: FTSE flops
London stocks finished the week on the back foot, with the FTSE 100 down 54 points at 9,649.
“The FTSE 100 edged lower after UK data showed the economy unexpectedly contracted by 0.1% month on month in October 2025, matching September’s decline and missing forecasts for modest growth, marking a fourth consecutive month of stagnation, while the UK trade deficit widened to its largest level in eight months,” IG senior technical analyst Axel Rudolph said.
4.14pm: FTSE slips, Wall Street whacked by Oracle, Rivian news
London's blue-chip share index was fairly benignly floating along in positive territory in the morning but slipped into the red around lunchtime then then in the final hour has seen that turn into a sharper slide.
Tobacco companies have led the decline, probably connected to reports about the Trump administration potentially loosening cannabis laws (see below).
Both BAT and Imperial Brands were modestly lower in late morning, but as US traders woke up, this has turned into a steeper fall, down 3.6% and 2.8% respectively.
In New York, all the major indices are in the red now, with the Dow Jones's gains flipped to a 0.5% decline, while the S&P 500 is down 1.2% and the Nasdaq has plunged 1.6%.
Oracle and Rivian seem to be the triggers.
Reports in the past half hour revealed that some of Oracle's data centres for OpenAI have been delayed to 2028 from 2027.
Earlier, Rivian unveiled a new AI chip to replace Nvidia in future vehicles, offering significant cost savings.
Nvidia turned from a 0.6% gain to a 2.2% decline, with all but one of the top 15 largest Nasdaq stocks now in the red.
3.29pm: Cannabis stocks surge, FTSE gets stoned
The FTSE 100 has dropped suddenly, led by cigarette companies British American Tobacco and Imperial Brands.
This comes alongside a surge in North American cannabis stocks on reports that President Trump is considering an executive order to reschedule marijuana at the federal level, potentially moving it from Schedule I to Schedule III.
The reports, including from the Washington Post and Axios, suggest Trump has discussed the proposal with marijuana industry executives, health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, and Medicare & Medicaid chief Mehmet Oz.
The discussions reportedly included a Wednesday call with House Speaker Mike Johnson, who expressed skepticism and cited studies and data opposing rescheduling, though industry executives reportedly countered his points during the call.
2.54pm: Mixed start on Wall Street
London stocks are not seeing any benefit today from another mixed start on Wall Street.
As in the past couple of sessions, the Dow Jones has opened higher, up 0.35%, while the S&P 500 has dropped 0.2% after hitting a new high yesterday.
The tech-powered Nasdaq continues its recent retreat, down another 0.4%, adding to the 0.3% fall yesterday but roughly flat compared to a week ago.
On the Nasdaq, leading the fallers are Broadcom (down 8.5%), Micron Technology (down 3.2%), Applovin and Palantir Technologies (both down 2.1%).
Risers are led by Lululemon Athletica, up 11.3%, and Netflix, up 2.8%. Nvidia, Tesla, Adobe, Warner Bros are also in green.
1.42pm: Trump moves to loosen AI red tape
Last night, President Trump signed an executive order to provide a single regulation framework for AI.
The order was said to "protect American AI innovation from an inconsistent and costly compliance regime resulting from varying State laws" by directing federal agencies to challenge and preempt conflicting state regulations.
The order also calls for the development of a national AI legislative framework and warns that states with restrictive AI laws may face loss of funding, as “the most restrictive states should not be allowed to dictate national AI policy at the expense of America’s domination of this new frontier.”
It also directs the SEC to conduct a review of policies to add more rules for greater transparency from its advisers while also instructing the FTC to investigate whether specific organizations have been acting in deceptive practices to ensure fair AI competition.
It proposes a 10-year ban on state regulations on AI, which was removed from Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill in July before it gained approval.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said the order creates "an easier path for all US AI companies from startups to Hyperscalers to capitalize on the significant demand for AI".
"This move is a major win for US big tech firms including OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, Anthropic, Meta, and many more AI companies across the landscape that have been lobbying to limit AI regulations as these would provide significant hurdles with limiting the innovation and deployment of this technology across all businesses."
Ives said: "In this AI arms race vs China the US cannot have these proposed red tape restrictions on the state level be a major impediment for big tech plays in a much looser China backdrop for AI with Beijing laser focused on giving China tech an advantage.
"Given that there have been over 1,000 AI laws proposed at the state level, this was a necessary move by the Trump administration to keep the US out in front for the AI Revolution over China as if state regulations were to be passed on a state-by-state basis, it would have crushed US AI startup culture given the legal fees tied with navigating the complex regulatory landscape in our view."
12.24pm: What the market is looking out for
With not much on the calendar today, "all eyes" now turn to the delayed US November jobs report, says market analyst Fawad Razaqzada at FOREX.com, along with a string of major central bank meetings, including the Bank of England and Bank of Japan.
The US non-farm payrolls will be released on Tuesday, at 13:30 GMT.
"The delayed November payrolls report will be the last major US macro data along with Thursday’s release of CPI to influence the USD/JPY forecast," says Razaqzada.
"Much will depend on this with the Fed’s focus firmly on employment, and any positive surprises could easily send the US dollar sharply higher, especially against some of the weaker currencies like the Japanese yen."
11.45am: Silver lining for miners
Gold and silver are doing well this morning, with gold up more than 1% at $4,331.70 an ounce - above $4,300 for the first time since mid-October - while silver is at a new record above $64.
That's had a knock-on effect on miners, with Fresnillo PLC (LSE:FRES) surging 4.9%, while Endeavour Mining PLC (LSE:EDV, TSX:EDV, OTCQX:EDVMF) is 3.4% higher. Antofagasta PLC (LSE:ANTO) is also doing well, gaining 2.2% this morning.
"The strength seen for precious metals this week highlights the response to a FOMC meeting that saw the committee kick-start a process that sees the balance sheet expand once again," commented Scope Markets' Joshua Mahony.
"While only tentative in nature, the move to start buying T-bills does highlight the willingness to gradually increase liquidity, helping to boost sentiment for gold and silver.
"With silver hitting record highs and gold less than 2% away from the $4381 high, the bull market appears to be kicking in once again as haven demand meets concerns around devaluations in the fiat monetary system."
10.50am: Other morning movers
The Footsie has halved its initial gains and is now just 20 points up at 9,723.34, a gain of about 0.2%. Meanwhile, US futures are pointing to a mixed open, with the Dow Jones expected to open 0.2% higher after closing at a record yesterday. S&P 500 futures are down 0.2% while Nasdaq futures are 0.5% lower as investors rotate out of the tech sector.
Here's a look at some of the morning's small-cap movers in London.
Mindflair PLC (AIM:MFAI) shares rose 12% after its portfolio company, Vizgard, secured a spot in NATO's prestigious DIANA 2026 cohort. Vizgard, which specialises in "visual autonomy" software for defence, gains access to funding, NATO test centres, and a simplified procurement route across the alliance. Read more
Tribal Group PLC (AIM:TRB) shares climbed 8% after forecasting full-year profits and cash ahead of market expectations. The education software provider expects to swing to at least £5 million net cash from a net debt position, allowing it to declare a 1.5p special dividend. Read more
Harbour Energy PLC (LSE:HBR) shares rose nearly 7% after agreeing to a $170 million deal to increase ownership in the Catcher and Kraken oil fields. The acquisition adds 20,000 boepd of production and 35 million boe of reserves, providing immediate, material free cash flow benefits. Read more
ITM Power PLC (AIM:ITM) shares rose 6% to 66.3p after securing two new international engineering contracts with a combined capacity of 70 MW. The hydrogen tech company will use its Neptune V plant for projects in Australia and Canada, marking its expansion into these key markets. Read more
Roquefort Therapeutics PLC (LSE:ROQ) shares fell 7% to 1.3p after extending its AO-252 licensing deadline to March 2026. The biotech increased upfront consideration and prioritised prostate cancer in the drug’s Phase I trial, citing positive pre-clinical data. Read more
Filtronic PLC (LSE:FTC) shares eased 4% to 137p, likely due to profit-taking despite an 83% year-to-date gain. The RF group announced a record contract with SpaceX for its E-band GaN product, plus other aerospace and defence deals. The trading update confirmed a strong pipeline and confidence in meeting full-year expectations. Read more
9.30: Positive mood in European markets
It's not just the FTSE 100 that's seeing a positive end to the week - other European markets are also trading higher today.
The Footsie has held onto most of its early gain, currently up 33 points at 9,735.66, while over in Frankfurt, the DAX has gained 0.6%. In Paris, the CAC 40 is 0.7% firmer.
“The US tech sell-off was short-lived as Wall Street narrowed losses towards the end of yesterday’s session, helping to lift the broader market mood,” said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell.
“That newfound optimism, or perhaps relief, extended to Europe on Friday with gains seen across all the major equity indices. The FTSE 100 was lifted by a strong showing from the financial sector and from miners as a sparkle returned to the gold price, up 0.2% to $4,321 per ounce."
9am: 'Nightmare before Christmas for Card Factory'
Card Factory shares crashed 23% to 73.86p - a three-year low - after slashing profit guidance, blaming squeezed consumers and soft high street footfall heading into its crucial Christmas period. The greetings card retailer now expects adjusted pre-tax profit of £55m-£60m, down 6-17% on last year's £66m. Back in September, it was forecasting "mid-to-high single-digit growth." Ouch.
The company insists its long-term strategy and efficiency programme are helping offset retail inflation, whilst Ireland, North America and the Funky Pigeon integration remain on track. The board's sticking with its share buyback and progressive dividend, signalling confidence despite the near-term wobble. Still, investors weren't buying it.
“There is a Nightmare before Christmas for Card Factory as it delivers a festive profit warning," commented AJ Bell's Dan Coatsworth. "It blames a weak UK high street, but it’s hard to look past the fact that a first-class stamp now costs more than one of its Christmas cards.
“Just as the advent of email and text communication kiboshed sending letters, the writing is also on the wall for sending Christmas cards. It’s not just the cost of sending an item by post that’s causing a headache. Weaker high street footfall is also a problem as Card Factory is heavily dependent on passing trade."
8.15am: Footsie 'off to the races'
The pundits were almost spot on this morning, with the FTSE 100 jumping 40 points to 9,743.21 in the first 15 minutes of trading, for a gain of 0.41%.
Miner Fresnillo PLC (LSE:FRES) led the gainers, up 3.1%, followed by Standard Chartered PLC (LSE:STAN) and Intercontinental Hotels Group PLC (LSE:IHG), with gains of around 2% each. International equipment rental company Ashtead Group PLC (LSE:AHT) rose 1.6%.
Medical products and technologies company ConvaTec Group PLC (LSE:CTEC), Coca-Cola Europacific Partners PLC (LSE:CCEP, NASDAQ:CCEP) and Premier Inn owner Whitbread PLC (LSE:WTB) led the decliners.
"The FTSE100 posted some resilient gains at the open, although lower than the futures market had suggested given the dampening effect on sentiment of the GDP update," commented interative investor's Richard Hunter.
"Notable early risers were the likes of InterContinental Hotels and Ashtead Group, both seen as beneficiaries of a stronger-than-expected US economy and indeed the rotation trade," Hunter said.
"Further gold price gains also saw Fresnillo and Endeavour Mining among the leaders, while the potential for Chinese stimulus lifted HSBC and Standard Chartered."
7.30am: Bad news for the economy
The UK economy stumbled in October, as activity slowed ahead of Chancellor Rachel Reeves' autumn Budget.
Office for National Statistics data shows GDP slipping 0.1% over the three months to October – barely budging after a 0.1% rise the previous quarter. Monthly GDP also dipped 0.1%, dragged down by services (down 0.3%) and construction (down 0.6%), though production perked up 1.1%.
Services flatlined over the quarter, with seven of fourteen subsectors in retreat – professional services, tech and communications took the biggest hits. Manufacturing had a shocker, down 0.5%, largely thanks to a 17.7% collapse in motor vehicle production following the Jaguar Land Rover cyberattack in late August, which shut down IT systems, halted global production for weeks, and contributed to a £485m quarterly loss.
Construction repair work fell 1%, though new projects just about edged into positive territory.
7.15am: FTSE called higher
The FTSE 100 is likely to open higher when trading gets underway in just under an hour, taking its cue from new record closes on Wall Street.
London's blue-chip index has been called 46 points firmer on the futures market, adding to yesterday's 47-point gain to 9,703.
Stocks recovered in the previous session after taking a hit after an earnings report from Oracle revived worries that the AI buildout boom may be getting a little too costly for some tech giants.
That saw the Nasdaq end lower on Thursday, down 0.3%, while the Dow Jones and S&P 500 powered to new highs, adding 1.3% and 0.2% respectively.
It's early yet, but US futures markets are pointing to more gains for the Dow and the S&P 500 when trading gets underway this afternoon, while tech stocks - and the Nasdaq - are likely to remain under pressure.
In Asia this morning, Tokyo's Nikkei is up 1.4%, Shanghai's SSE Composite is up 0.4%, and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong is up 1.5%. In Mumbai, the BSE Sensex is up 0.5%, and in Sydney, the ASX is 1.2% higher.