London’s stock market kicked off the week with a touch of Monday blues, as the FTSE 100 dipped on the back of drooping commodity prices and an ongoing saga in the housebuilding sector.
The index, heavily weighted towards resource companies, shed 0.3% by 10:00 GMT, mirroring the woes of the mining industry. Industrial metal miners, particularly sensitive to copper price fluctuations, took a 1.8% tumble as the red metal weakened due to a resurgent dollar and China’s bulging copper stockpiles.
Adding to the market’s woes was the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launching an investigation into the housebuilding sector. The CMA raised concerns about “deep-rooted issues” hindering new housing developments and is probing potential information sharing amongst players, sending shivers down the spines of housebuilders who collectively shed over 1% of their value.
However, not all companies shared the market’s glum mood. Standard Chartered continued its winning streak, climbing 2.4% for the third consecutive session, fueled by analyst optimism with at least three brokerages raising their price targets.
Meanwhile, logistics firm Wincanton surged 11.2%, reaching an all-time high after CEVA Logistics, a subsidiary of French shipping giant CMA CGM, sweetened its takeover offer to a staggering £604.7 million ($766.2 million).
On the flip side, Bunzl found itself at the bottom of the blue-chip pile, plummeting 4.8%. This freefall followed the company’s cautious outlook, with its operating margin expected to dip slightly below 2023 levels this year.
As the week unfolds, the focus will shift to key economic data releases from the US and Europe, which could sway investor sentiment. Additionally, investors eagerly await comments from Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill, hoping for clues about the future trajectory of interest rates.