Stock analysis posts tagged "UK Market" from Openbook.

The FTSE 100 spent Monday to Wednesday inching towards 10,900 before easing back, while a near-£10bn government affordable-homes allocation gave Vistry its best day since 2020 and a third straight fall in Brent weighed on BP and Shell.

The FTSE 100 ended Monday to Wednesday all but flat as Brent near $92 lifted BP and Shell, while UK inflation rose to 2.9% and the FTSE 250 slipped 0.9%. Kainos and Made Tech surged on guidance upgrades; Smith & Nephew fell as its finance chief quit.

London's blue chips slipped in all three sessions from Monday to Wednesday as Brent crude neared $90 a barrel, with Imperial Brands, Spirax and Legal & General among the fallers while Balfour Beatty hit a record high.

AstraZeneca fell 9% on a reported Bristol Myers Squibb merger approach, Prologis agreed a £14bn deal for SEGRO, and a slide in oil reshaped London's week as the FTSE 250 set back-to-back record closes.

London's blue chips closed at a record on Wednesday as oil swung from an 8.7% slump to a 7.9% rebound, while Wall Street suffered its worst day since April 2025. Unilever, Croda and Rio Tinto led the FTSE 100 higher; Barclays fell.