Investment 13 March 2026 - 16 March 2026

Legal & General finished Monday’s session 0.65% higher at 247.9 pence. After the bell, the insurer disclosed its first purchase under the new £1.2 billion buyback—2,992,834 shares bought across March 12 and 13, set for cancellation. This comes as investors try to figure out if cash payouts are enough to shore up a stock dented by last week’s annual numbers. L&G fell short on core operating profit. The Solvency II ratio, which tracks capital health, landed at 210%—a drop from 232%.

The FTSE 100 finished Monday 0.55% higher at 10,317.69, shaking off early nerves as energy stocks got a boost when oil prices slipped. BP and Shell both picked up more than 1%. Financials, consumer staples—including everyday product makers—and property investment trusts joined the rally. Segro jumped 2.8% and Hammerson surged 4.1% after Morgan Stanley upgrades. The FTSE 250 dropped 0.2%, its fourth loss in a row. The timing of the rebound stands out—it landed right ahead of a stretch of central bank meetings. The Bank of England is up on Thursday, and rate cut bets have faded; investors are no longer assuming one as the default. According to a Reuters poll, most economists see the BoE holding at 3.75%. Dani

Anglo American inched 0.23% higher to 3,116 pence on Monday, falling short of gains posted by the broader London market and some other miners. According to Reuters and market data, shares swung from 3,063 up to 3,175 pence. A dip in copper and a late technical hiccup at the London Metal Exchange muddied direction across the sector. Here’s why it’s key: Anglo has shifted into the frame of a restructuring play, not just a mining bet. The company’s push to boost copper exposure—lining up a deal with Teck Resources and putting De Beers on the block—means investors are combing through every quiet move in the stock for signals on that strategy.

Sydney—March 14, 2026, 10:43 AEDT. Suncorp Group jumped 2.6% on Friday, closing at A$15.62 after starting at A$15.23—while the S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.14% to settle at 8,617.10. Suncorp’s interim dividend lands March 31.

Fortescue Ltd surged 4.1% to A$20.49 late Friday, as China tightened restrictions on BHP’s iron ore, sending prices for the commodity to a two-month peak and fueling talk that Fortescue could come out ahead. It matters now: China is still Fortescue’s main customer, and state-owned China Mineral Resources Group, or CMRG, handles ore purchases for over half the steel mills in the country. Fortescue has been working for months to strengthen its connection there. CEO Dino Otranto, back in January, said the partnership had to get “much more comprehensive.”

Commonwealth Bank of Australia finished Friday’s session up 1.26% at A$173.76, shares shifting between A$171.99 and A$174.90, with investors snapping up the country’s top lender before the Reserve Bank of Australia’s meeting next week. The S&P/ASX 200 benchmark slipped 0.1% to 8,617.10. This shift is significant: traders have moved quickly to adjust their outlook on the RBA. According to a Reuters poll released Friday, 23 out of 30 economists now see the cash rate jumping by 25 basis points to 4.10% on March 17. Back in February, the consensus had rates holding at 3.85%.

London, March 13, 2026, 20:51 GMT. Taylor Wimpey plc finished Friday up 1.13% at 94.68 pence, recouping some ground lost during Thursday’s drop. Still, shares remain roughly 25% under the 52-week peak.

RS Group PLC shares dipped 2.1%, trading at 631 pence as of 16:35 GMT on Friday, according to company data. This shift is notable—RS won’t provide another scheduled update until its 2025/26 pre-close trading statement hits in late March. Annual results follow on May 20. Until then, the market’s left with scant new information from the company.

HSBC shares dropped for a second straight day on Friday, falling about 1% by 1058 GMT as investors continued to shun lenders with heavy exposure to the Gulf. The stock had already shed over 5% on Thursday. Standard Chartered slipped as well. HSBC is suddenly standing in for Gulf risk—at least in investors’ eyes—despite beating forecasts on annual profit just weeks back. Both a Reuters analysis and Thursday’s JPMorgan note flag HSBC and Standard Chartered as the European banks with the most exposure to the conflict. HSBC shares have slipped 14% since the Feb. 28 strikes on Iran.

Telstra Group last changed hands at A$5.12 on the ASX, slipping 0.2%. The telecoms giant, according to a March 12 filing, bought back another 1.95 million shares for A$9.99 million as part of its on-market buyback. The buyback now sits at the heart of the Telstra stock narrative. Last month’s upbeat half-year numbers prompted the board to bump the program up to A$1.25 billion and push the interim dividend to 10.5 Australian cents a share. That’s 90.5% franked, so most investors pocket the attached tax credits.

Suncorp Group Limited finished Thursday’s session at A$15.23, gaining 1.47%. This came as the S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 1.31%. Investors looked over another buyback update from the insurer, with the latest filing hitting the market at 8:21 a.m. local time. The rebound stands out, stretching a rapid comeback for a stock that touched its 52-week low at A$13.99 back on March 4. Still, Suncorp is trading 30.2% under its August 2025 peak of A$21.82. Some investors are zeroing in on the ongoing buyback and a 17-cent interim dividend slated for March 31—those are the near-term signals they're watching.