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FTSE 100 up 60 points to 10,325 Miners lifted by copper's new record highs Vistry slides further on profit warning Babcock, Avon Tech, Savills, Marshalls, TP Icap, Spirax also report 5.11pm: Gains trimmed Despite the ongoing political turmoil, the FTSE 100 finished Wednesday’s session higher, up 60 points at 10,325.
“The morning’s relief rally in UK assets has been tempered by Wes Streeting’s move against Keir Starmer, barely 24 hours after the leadership challenge appeared to have fizzled out,” IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp said.
“UK investors now face the prospect of more political uncertainty that adds to the already clouded outlook. However we haven’t seen a full reversal of the gains in the FTSE 100, helped by weakness in the pound which has continued to lose ground against the dollar.”
4.17pm: Indices inch ahead London stocks are heading for a small gain, with the blue-chips up 0.3% and the mid-cap FTSE 250 up 0.2%.
Miners make up six of the top 10 risers on the Footsie, with Antofagasta leading the pack, up 7.5% as copper prices hit new highs.
Intertek has climbed 6.5% after its board said it was amenable to accepting a take-private bid.
On the FTSE 250, the biggest faller is Vistry, down 12.3% after a gloomy trading statement.
Airtel Africa is down 12.4% too, after majority shareholder Bharti Airtel said it would increase its stake by buying shares at a discounted price.
3.50pm: Speech reactions More King's speech reactions.
Measures were confirmed to deliver the Chancellor's Leeds Reforms and modernise the regulatory framework to support innovation and competitiveness, including proposed reforms to the Financial Ombudsman Service and the Senior Managers and Certification regime, these "will improve regulatory certainty and reduce burden", says Karen Northey, a director at the Investment Association.
"With £3 trillion managed by our industry on behalf of European clients, a closer partnership with the EU on financial services, in addition to those industries referenced in the King’s Speech, can also help unlock investment opportunities."
The speech also saw the government announce legislation to ban all new exploration licences for oil and gas in the North Sea.
Greenpeace UK’s co-executive director Areeba Hamid says: "By calling time on North Sea oil and gas, the government is opening a bright future for cheap and homegrown sources of renewable energy. If the recent turmoil has taught us anything it's that relying on fossil fuels - whether from the North Sea or Gulf states - will only leave us at the mercy of foreign wars and dictators."
The King also announced that the government will ban the use of leasehold for new flats, cap ground rents at £250 a year and implement a new process for converting to commonhold.
Scott Goldstein, a property disputes lawyer at Payne Hicks Beach, says: "Developers will no longer be able to hold onto freeholds once construction finishes, tightening their ground rent income, which is already reduced with the upcoming cap in 2028.
"The further loss of earnings from lease extensions could prompt developers to recoup costs by upping the price of new build flats. Developers may also turn their attention towards projects not affected by the leasehold restrictions, such as Build to Rent schemes or social housing."
He says buyers may soon find themselves footing more of the bill as the industry adapts to the reforms.
3.39pm: London AI startup valued at £3.5bn Google, Nvidia and AMD have invested in London AI startup Recursive Superintelligence as it raised US$650 million in an initial funding round, valuing the company at £3.5 billion (US$4.65 billion) as it looks to build self-improving AI systems.
The round was led by Google Ventures and Greycroft as the new company said it was "emerging from stealth" after being founded only months ago, currently employing only around 25 people in London and San Francisco.
Recursive’s founders include former Salesforce chief scientist Richard Socher and UCL professor Tim Rocktäschel, formerly of Google DeepMind.
The company says it is pursuing AI systems capable of “recursively” improving themselves through automated experimentation without human intervention.
Rocktäschel said in a tweet: "Excited to co-found Recursive with an exceptional team in London and SF to create AI that experiments on how to safely improve itself, turning compute into knowledge that accumulates in an open-ended process of endless, automated scientific discoveries."
UK venture capital firm Twin Path also invested.
Super proud to be an investor in @Recursive_SI - we think the only UK VC backing this London based Frontier AI lab - if their prove their hypothesis- we think they can - then the world changes ???????????? https://t.co/BfwRMiDvfN
— John Spindler (@Twinpathvc) May 13, 2026 2.55pm: Wall Street mixed at open Wall Street has opened with a lack of clear direction, while the Footsie is heading northwards again.
In New York, the Dow Jones has started 0.5% lower, with the S&P 500 slipping 0.15%, though the tech-powered Nasdaq Composite has inched up 0.1%.
Dragging on the Dow are falls for IBM, Salesforce and Home Depot, all down over 2%, with Amex, Microsoft, Disney and Nike next.
Leading the Nasdaq 100 risers is semiconductor group Marvell Technology, up 8%, followed by peers Texas Instruments, Micron Technology and Analog Devices.
1.57am: Blue-chips in the red The FTSE is heading lower.
The biggest falls inlcude Airtel Africa, Spirax, JD Sports, IMI and SSE, smaller blue-chips.
But there are some from among the larger names, including RELX, BAE Systems, Experian and Imperial Brands, all down 2.4% to 1.4% lower.
Among the biggest heavyweights, seven of the 10 largest conpanies are in the red or flat, with AstraZeneca, GSK and Unilever all down close to 1%.
1.27pm: King's speech gets mixed reaction from City There's some comments on the King's speech.
Richard Stone, chief executive of the Association of Investment Companies, says: “It’s disappointing that the government has missed an opportunity to push forward with the reforms it has promised to enfranchise retail investors.
"Unfortunately, we are still in a situation where platforms and other nominees can choose whether to pass on company information and voting rights to underlying retail shareholders. The resulting dislocation between companies and their shareholders hands disproportionate power to motivated minority shareholders like Saba Capital."
He says the AIC will continue to press the government to fulfil its promise to enact the Bill of Shareholder Rights proposed by the Digitisation Taskforce, as data shows that where companies have a higher level of retail shareholders, turnout is lower.
Shevaun Haviland, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, says there were "some positives for business with action to tackle late payments, simplify trade with the EU and strengthen apprenticeships [that] can make a real difference to cashflow and confidence on the ground."
She says there are also "significant gaps", with disappointment that there is "no clear progress on reforming business rates, which remain a major cost burden for firms across the UK".
Rain Newton-Smith, the CBI's chief executive, says: "Moves to strengthen energy security, bolster transport connections and streamline financial services regulation are welcome, as are concrete measures to deepen ties with Europe.
"The EU remains our most important trading partner and the government is right to take steps to smooth UK-EU trade and help us realise the full potential of this vital trading relationship."
1.06pm: Goldman doesn't see gilts coming down soon Goldman Sachs has warned that higher oil prices linked to the Iran conflict and growing political uncertainty in the UK are likely to keep government borrowing costs elevated for some time.
The bank estimates that rising gilt yields and weaker growth could wipe around £12 billion from Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ fiscal headroom, limiting room for public spending and making it harder to meet borrowing rules.
The yield on the UK 10-year gilt rose above 5.1% this week, its highest level since 2008, while 30-year borrowing costs briefly hit levels last seen in 1998.
12.32pm: FTSE gains wiped out as challenge to PM could come tomorrow And now the FTSE has seen all its earlier gains wiped out.
It is tempting to say this is because UK bond yields are rising again, which they are, as several reports reveal that Wes Streeting is preparing to resign and had already discussed his intentions with PM Starmer ahead of the speech.
The latest reporting suggests momentum may be shifting towards a formal leadership challenge from Streeting, with sugestions that he may have secured the 81 Labour MPs required to trigger a contest.
The Times chief political correspondent, Aubrey Allegretti, tweeted that Streeting is “going to go for it” tomorrow, although there is still no public confirmation of this.
Gilt yields have "shot higher" on these Streeting reports, says market analyst Neil Wilson at Saxo, adding that "It's clear that bond markets are very sensitive to headlines but we have not had confirmation yet as to any move to trigger a contest.
"However, as detailed this morning it seems increasingly clear that Starmer cannot hold on and I expect a move to happen once the King's Speech is out of the way."
And as for stock markets, despite these UK bond market moves, the London index is not the only one in the red, with those in Paris and Madrid down 0.4% and 0.2%.
Wall Street stock futures are mixed again, with the Dow Jones seen falling 0.3%, but the Nasdaq called 0.6% higher and S&P 500 futures up 0.2%.
Analyst David Morrison at Trade Nation points out that the US dollar is stronger, building on gains made earlier in the week.
The dollar index hit a one-week high of 98.3 as "investors once again looked to mitigate risk. Tensions between the US and Iran remain high, and the month-long ceasefire between the two sides looks closer than ever to being broken.
"Could it be that it is only President Trump’s visit to Beijing, and tomorrow’s meeting with Xi Jinping, that is keeping the fragile peace going for a few more days?
"The talks should prove to be a pivotal moment in relations between the two economic giants. Topics are expected to include the war with Iran, energy security, AI, trade, tariffs and Taiwan, so plenty on which to focus."
11.56am: King's speech over, key Starmer opponent prepares to resign UK gilt yields rose ahead of the King's speech, but are easing now, as nothing seems to have piqued the ire of the mighty bond market.
Having said that, government borrowing costs are higher than they were a week ago.
It comes as news emerges that health secretary Wes Streeting is preparing to quit as health secretary and could mount a formal challenge for the leadership as early as tomorrow, per the Gudairan.
This was the second King’s speech under this government, with more than 35 bills and draft bills unveiled, compared to around 50 a year ago.
Bills were targeted at "strengthening the UK’s foundations through measures to bolster economic, energy, national security", with laws focused on immigration, public services and state reforms.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:
11.31am: King's speech to play to two key audiences With the bond markets watching Westminster more closely, the King's speech is just starting in the House of Lords.
“From a market standpoint, the King’s speech is less about specific policy detail and more about what it signals on credibility, cohesion and control," says John Wyn-Evans, market analyst at Rathbones.
That is "particularly crucial" for this year's speech, given the domestic and international backdrop.
Despite the name, the speech is written by the government, not by the monarch personally.
Investors will be "listening for reassurance" that Keir Starmer's political agenda is "grounded in fiscal realism and a clear understanding of the constraints imposed by inflation, debt servicing costs", Wyn-Evans says.
“For gilt markets in particular, the tone matters as much as the content."
However, while the bond markets want a calm, measured speech that reinforces continuity in fiscal oversight and respect for institutional guardrails, the Labour party also wants the government to convey that it is making big changes to help turn the economy around and help households.
"What the markets want to hear and what the prime minister’s detractors want to hear may not overlap," says Wyn-Evans.
This adds an additional layer of uncertainty for investors.
But he notes that UK assets "tend to perform best when policy direction is predictable rather than ambitious, and when political noise is kept from spilling into fiscal outcomes".
However, that may increase calls from within the party for Starmer's head.
10.55am: Tax the rich more, say the rich More than seven out of 10 UK millionaires would be willing to pay more tax to ensure the government can fund public assets such as the NHS and schools, according to new research.
A poll commissioned by Patriotic Millionaires UK found wealthy Britons are more concerned about doctors and skilled workers leaving the country than fellow millionaires emigrating amid debate over higher taxes on wealth.
A Survation poll found 79% backed higher taxes to create opportunities for young people.
Some 43% said they were most concerned about doctors and healthcare staff leaving the UK, compared with just 9% who were most concerned about other millionaires leaving.
The group is campaigning for higher taxes on wealth, including a 2% levy on fortunes above £10 million.
10.14am: Defence stocks in focus Some reaction to other company news this morning.
"Disappointing", is the Babcock headline reaction from analyst David Farrell at Jefferies.
He says the "emergence of significant charges on the Type 31 contract, unfortunately, overshadows what was another year of meaningful progress, surpassing consensus expectations on revenue, EBITA and FCF.
"It may take some time for the market to digest the charges on the group's last remaining legacy project, but it is important not to lose sight of the positive trajectory, with FY27F consensus EBITA well underpinned and a new £200m buyback announced."
Babcock shares are up 1.7% this morning.
Elsewhere in the defence sector, Avon Technologies is down 7% to a year's low as strong Ukraine-related orders from the Protection division was partly offset by a decline in the Team Wendy helmets business.
Funding delays linked to US government shutdowns "contributed to some temporary weakness in orders from federal agencies and law enforcement", says Andrew Humphrey at house broker Peel Hunt.
Orders were down 32% year-on-year, largely the result of funding delays at the US Department of Homeland Security from the government shutdown, though Congressional discussions on extensions to DHS funding ongoing since the shutdown ended in late April, with management expectations for additional helmet orders before the end of the calendar year.
9.16am: Intertek and miners keeping FTSE afloat After an hour and a quarter, the FTSE 100 is up 68 points at 10,333.5.
Intertek, followed by a group of miners and financials, continue to lead the index.
Over in mainland Europe, stocks are also mostly in green, with Germany's DAX up 0.8% and France's CAC 40 rising 0.1%.
"Global equity markets are trying to edge higher this morning, but the mood is far from euphoric, with the ongoing stalemate in the Middle East continuing to drag on risk appetite," says market analyst Matt Britzman Hargreaves Lansdown.
"Investors are also watching President Trump’s meetings with China closely, with any signs of progress on trade likely to set the tone for the next leg in market sentiment.
"For now, markets look cautiously constructive, but there is still plenty of geopolitical noise threatening to knock confidence off course."
After UK government bonds had a bruising session yesterday, there has not been much of a let-up this morning, with borrowing costs hovering around levels last seen during the financial crisis. The 10-year yield fell below 5% this morning but is now back up slighly below 5.1%, while the 30-year yield is still above 5.7%.
On the mining sector, Britzman says: "Copper’s surge to fresh all-time highs is a timely reminder that the AI story is not just about chips and software. Futures climbed this morning, helped by stronger Chinese demand and mounting supply concerns, with resilient industrial activity, power grid investment, renewables and data centre growth all pulling in the same direction."
8.51am: Average CEO earns 145 more than UK average salary Average pay for FTSE 100 chief executives has risen 15% to £5.2 million, far outpacing growth in employee wages, according to new figures from the High Pay Centre.
The think tank said median employee pay rose 4.85% over the same period.
The ratio between the median CEO and employee reached 95:1 across 64 companies analysed, while compared to the UK-wide median salary of £39,039, the median CEO earned 145 times more.
High Pay Centre spokesperson Andrew Speke said the trend risked damaging morale, productivity and staff retention, calling for a “balanced, fair and sustainable” approach to corporate pay.
8.39am: Savills and TP Icap reaction There's some quick broker reaction after updates from FTSE 250 names Savills and TP Icap.
Peel Hunt analyst Clyde Lewis has reiterated a 'buy' rating on the estate agency giant after an AGM trading update revealed things were running marginally ahead of board expectations.
In terms of outlook, he notes that the group's commercial transactions pipeline remains strong, with the group expecting the traditional second-half weighting, while residential activity is likely to be mixed, "with a softer Middle Eastern market tempering the UK and Asia performances".
Lewis points out that the shares, which are down 0.5% today and have fallen around 16% year to date, are now available for around nine times forecast 2026 earnings.
As for TP Icap, the financial market infrastructure group, where first-quarter revenues rose 13% year on year, Jens Ehrenberg at Cavendish says this is comfortably ahead of expectations, though the shares are not quite up 1%.
He describes the update as strong, with the group benefiting from elevated volatility levels driven by the geopolitical and macroeconomic backdrop.
8.15am: FTSE off to a flier thanks to miners and banks The FTSE 100 has been catapulted higher by early gains for miners, financials and defence and aerospace stocks.
In opening trades, the London index has flown 73 points higher to 10,338.
Top of the initial leaderboard is Intertek, up 7.4% after its board said it "would be minded to recommend" a bid from Swedish private equity firm EQT to shareholders.
Next comes a phalanx of miners, with Antofagasta, Fresnillo, Endeavour, Anglo American, Rio Tinto and Glencore up between 4.9% and 2.6%.
Asia focused financials are next, with Standard Chartered and Prudential both up around 2%. Domestic lenders Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group are only slightly behind that.
Babcock International gained an initla 2% after its update (see below).
8am: Babcock fires off complicated update Babcock International has unveiled a new £200 million share buyback despite taking a £140 million hit on its Type 31 frigate programme.
The FSTE 100 defence contractor said strong cash generation and trading momentum left its outlook for 2027 unchanged, with underlying operational performance in the year to 31 March particularly strong in its Nuclear and Aviation divisions.
Profits were dragged lower by a non-recurring charge linked to the Royal Navy frigate contract, followed an engineering "maturity review" of the five-ship programme after higher levels of rework than expected during the outfitting stage of the first two vessels. The first two ships have been floated off, with the keel of ship three laid and construction has formally started on ship four.
Around £100 million of the £140 million charge will be recognised as a revenue reversal in the 2026 financial year, with the balance added to contract loss provisions.
Underlying operating profit excluding the Type 31 charge rose 19% at constant currency, while revenue climbed 10%.
7.40am: Vistry warning Vistry Group has warned that first-half profit will be "significantly lower" than last year, with trading since the start of 2026 affected by macroeconomic uncertainty that has increased since its results in March, with weaker market conditions hitting the second quarter
The builder has paused its share buyback programme as the housebuilder ramps up incentives and discounts to accelerate sales and improve cash generation.
Pausing the buyback is part of a wider push to reduce debt, including increased efforts to sell completed and near-completed homes, tighter discipline on partner deals and slower build rates on some sites.
7.17am: FTSE 100 called higher as oil prices rise again The FTSE 100 is predicted to mount a bit of a comeback on Wednesday, despite oil prices rising after a report that the United Arab Emirates has been carrying out military attacks on Iran.
Jet fighters "secretly" made retaliatory attacks on Iran, including one on an oil refinery, which was said to make the oil-producing nation a clearer target if Tehran's ceasefire with Washington is abandoned. Brent crude is hovering just below $107 a barrel.
On the futures market, London's blue-chip index has been called around 55 points higher, following a session when it battled back from a 110-point deficit to finish down just four points at 10,265.32.
US stocks were mixed overnight, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq sliding 0.7%, while the S&P 500 closed down less than 0.2% and the Dow Jones rose 0.1%.
Treasury yields moved higher as the effects of the Iran war let to a three-year high reading in CPI inflation, with traders scaling back expectations for rate cuts any time soon.
"Fears are mounting again about sticky inflation, modest downside risks to economic activity, and (discreetly), higher US interest rates," says market analyst Kyle Rodda at Capital.com.
"Although it’s only manifesting in Fed Fund Futures and Treasury yields, the markets are pricing in that the next move from the US Federal Reserve will be a rate hike."
Currently, the signals imply a 40% chance of a Fed hike by the end of the year.
In the absence of any market-moving earnings until Nvidia next week, with Middle East peace expected talks to go quiet as US President Donald Trump lands in China, markets may "enter something of a vacuum over the next few days", Rodda says.
"Global trade policy will be in focus and may shift attention away from geopolitics for a day or so, especially given the US is unlikely to make any bold moves in the war while its President is on a diplomatic visit with its adversary’s ally."
London-listed companies reporting today include Babcock, Vistry, Savills, Martshalls, Spirax and Avon Technologies.
