LONDON, July 8, 2026, 18:03 BST
- FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) slid 1.7% to 10,489.04. That’s the index’s biggest drop since May 15. The FTSE 250 (INDEXFTSE:MCX) ended down 1.5%, worst since mid-March.
- Brent surged after U.S. President Donald Trump declared the Iran interim deal “over.” Trading on the London Stock Exchange had already closed at that point. Reuters
- BP LON:BP and Shell LON:SHEL gained as crude prices moved up, but over 80% of FTSE 100 shares traded lower.
FTSE 100 drops even as oil majors BP and Shell climb. Crude prices rose, energy was the standout sector, but the main index still logged its steepest loss in almost eight weeks. Investors saw that London’s exposure to oil couldn’t shield the broader market once crude shifted into a rates and inflation story.
London markets were closed at the time of writing. The LSE runs from 8:00 to 16:30 local. Moves below show closes or the last confirmed trades, not live prices.
| Market gauge | Latest confirmed move | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) | -1.7% to 10,489.04 | Worst daily drop since May 15. Oil stocks couldn’t slow the selloff. |
| FTSE 250 (INDEXFTSE:MCX) | -1.5% | No support from oil for UK-focused shares. |
| Brent crude | +5.61% to $78.36; later cited up 7% in U.S. trade | Energy risk flipped from company boost to a broader headwind. |
| Sterling | Flat near $1.3351; 85.47 pence per euro | The pound held steady, showing less stress than stocks. |
| Wall Street | Dow -1.46%, S&P 500 -0.89%, Nasdaq -0.91% at 12:04 p.m. ET | London’s slide followed a global market pullback. |
Market breadth lagged the main index. Industrial metal miners weighed most, while precious-metal miners dropped 7%. Over 80% of blue-chip names closed lower. Usually a jump in oil would push London ahead in Europe, but that didn’t happen. The session saw growth signals cut and inflation risk priced in at once.
Analysts were divided on how long to keep chasing the rally. Fiona Cincotta from City Index said the peace process is “very fragile”. Aneeka Gupta at WisdomTree called the move a “big wake-up call.” Khoon Goh at ANZ pointed to Hormuz as “the main thing.” Chris Beauchamp at IG said it “weighs heavily on sentiment.” Reuters
There was nothing unclear about the trigger. Trump spoke to reporters in Ankara and said the Iran war’s interim agreement was “over” and threatened more U.S. strikes. Iran answered by claiming it hit U.S. military sites in Bahrain and Kuwait, following U.S. attacks on Iranian targets linked to tanker incidents in the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. also pulled its authorization for Iranian oil sales, setting July 17 as the date to end them. Reuters
UK markets came through with sterling steady. The pound held flat against the dollar and slipped just a bit against the euro. The sharp drop in the FTSE wasn’t about a sudden currency slump—this was about investors re-pricing future earnings as oil and bond yields climbed.
There wasn’t much relief from local data. The KPMG and REC jobs survey found temp billings at their highest in over three years, but total staff demand slipped at its fastest rate in five months. Permanent starting pay also hit a five-month high. Lisa Fernihough at KPMG called it a “pivot to temporary work”. That’s a tricky mix for the Bank of England so long as oil prices hold up. Reuters
| Stock or sector | Wednesday move / data point | Market read |
|---|---|---|
| BP LON:BP | +3.5% | Simple oil play. |
| Shell LON:SHEL | +2.3% | Traded with oil, lagged BP. |
| Jet2 (LON:JET2) | +8.2%; summer passengers booked to date +7.1% | Travel spend isn’t dead; hedged fuel helps. |
| Vistry Group (LON:VTY) | -7.1%; first-half pretax loss warning of about £30 million | Housing still looks soft. |
| IG Group LON:IGG | -2.2%; proposed Jersey holding company | Not enough to move the stock. |
| Precious-metal miners | -7% | Gold dropped, rates worries knocked the sector. |
Jet2 stood out, though the story is mixed. The company reported summer capacity up 7.7% from a year ago and said 90% of its jet-fuel is hedged at $743 a ton. CEO Steve Heapy linked booking strength to a “calming of events in the Gulf.” But Trump’s remarks renewed market nerves before shares settled on the earlier update. Reuters
Vistry gave a starker signal for UK investors. The housebuilder said the average discount for private buyers hit 7.1%, up from 1.4% last year, while it trimmed unsold private stock from around £600 million to under £300 million. RBC Capital’s Anthony Codling called the outlook “an own goal.” Shares fell. The move shows markets still hit stocks that clean up balance sheets when mortgage risks grow. The Guardian
IG Group posted stronger numbers but the stock dropped. The trading platform reported first-half revenue up 18%, with active customers jumping roughly 66% on a reported basis. IG also proposed a new Jersey holding company and noted about two-thirds of revenue now comes from outside the UK. On a quieter day that news might have lifted the shares. But on Wednesday, investors focused more on macro risk than on structure or growth.
This trade is tighter than the headline move. If crude drops again and sterling keeps up, oil majors in the FTSE could help steady the index. But if crude sticks around $80 and bond yields keep climbing, that same oil weight turns into a drag for miners, builders, travel, and other stocks that like lower rates.
