London, May 2, 2026, 18:03 BST
FTSE 100 slipped 0.1% to finish at 10,363.93 on Friday, chalking up its third consecutive weekly drop as London heads into a long weekend. The UK’s blue- chip index took a hit mostly from energy stocks and AstraZeneca. Over in the mid-caps, the FTSE 250 managed a 0.3% gain.
London’s market direction isn’t just about corporate results anymore. Investors are juggling Middle East tensions, choppy oil, and a Bank of England that kept rates steady but dodged the tough calls on inflation. The FTSE 100 jumped 1.6% Thursday, Rolls-Royce and Glencore out front, but that bounce couldn’t turn the week around.
No clear direction for the week. FTSE 100 started off lower Monday, then managed a modest uptick Tuesday, according to Investing.com data. Wednesday saw a 1.16% slide, followed by a 1.62% pop Thursday. Friday, the index edged down 0.14%. The close, barely changed from April 24’s 10,379.08 mark, still left the index negative for the week.
Friday’s drop didn’t tell the whole story. According to AJ Bell’s market report, the FTSE 100 bounced back from an intraday bottom of 10,294.20. Brent crude for June slipped to $108.86 per barrel—down from $114.38 at Thursday’s London close—as traders weighed word of a new Iranian peace offer. On the week, the FTSE 100 closed off 0.1%, the FTSE 250 was down 0.2%, and the AIM All-Share inched up 0.2%, AJ Bell said.
AstraZeneca slipped after its camizestrant breast cancer therapy ran into trouble with a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel, which voted 6-3 against the experimental drug. The sticking point: trial design, not concerns about safety or efficacy, according to Reuters. JPMorgan shrugged it off as a “minor negative.” Leerink, for its part, noted the decision still “left the door open” for other camizestrant programs. Reuters
AstraZeneca noted the FDA isn’t obligated to follow the committee’s recommendation and said it will keep engaging with the agency. Susan Galbraith, executive vice president for oncology haematology R&D, called the result a “mixed outcome” and said AstraZeneca is disappointed, but added the company stands by the combination’s clinical benefit. AstraZeneca
NatWest dragged on the market after reporting a 12% jump in first-quarter operating profit before tax, landing at 2 billion pounds. The bank raised its full-year income guidance to the upper end of its 17.2 billion to 17.6 billion pound range. Still, a 283 million pound impairment charge—nearly half of it, 140 million pounds, blamed on gloomier economic projections tied to the Middle East war—caught attention. Shares slipped as traders zeroed in on the softer UK outlook and non-interest income falling short of analyst estimates.
NatWest’s Paul Thwaite said the bank kicked off 2026 on a solid footing, but he flagged a tougher backdrop. “Market conditions are uncertain,” the company stated in its outlook. NatWest will tweak its internal forecasts as the economy shifts. NatWest Group
Oil prices offered little support to London’s FTSE 100, despite the index’s sizable energy holdings. BP shares came under pressure after Bloomberg News, via Reuters, reported the company is considering selling part or all of its UK North Sea assets—a review that might fetch around 2 billion pounds if it leads to a full exit. BP declined to comment, Reuters said. The North Sea has already seen Chevron, Shell and TotalEnergies shed assets or overhaul their portfolios.
Pockets of strength stood out. Pearson climbed following its first-quarter sales update, while Unilever reached a one-month peak. Rolls-Royce advanced again, sticking with its profit guidance. According to Hargreaves Lansdown’s ShareCast feed, DCC, Entain and ICG also ranked among the FTSE 100’s top performers—underscoring that losses weren’t sweeping across the board.
Oil’s drop on Friday might not last. The Bank of England kept rates steady at 3.75% and outlined potential Iran-war fallout that could force a sharp rate hike. David Rees at Schroders flagged that an energy crunch could push food prices higher, but with some delay. J.P. Morgan Private Bank’s Madison Faller pointed out that markets seem more focused on inflation risks than the threat to growth.
Sentiment picked up beyond the UK. According to Reuters, both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq notched all-time closing highs on Friday, lifted by solid earnings and falling oil prices. Global equities had already posted their strongest monthly advance since 2020 in April. Back in London, though, trading wrapped up with a more selective tone—just a handful of big names moved the needle.
