(Sharecast News) - London stocks fell in early trade on Thursday as investors waded through a barrage of earnings reports.
At 0840 GMT, the FTSE 100 was down 0.3% at 8,689.61.

Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "As concerns swirl about the latest tariff threats emanating from the White House, this time in the direction of the EU, there's set to be a subdued start to trading as investors mull the repercussions.

"The FTSE 100 has opened lower, as caution remains the name of the game amid a murky outlook for the global economy."

Speaking at his first cabinet meeting on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump threatened to impose 25% tariffs on the EU, saying that details of the tariffs would be released soon.

In equity markets, Barclays, Diageo, Unilever and Ashmore all fell as they traded without entitlement to the dividend.

WPP tumbled as the advertising giant reported a drop in full-year revenues and said like-for-like revenue less pass-through costs for 2025 were expected to be flat to 2% lower.

St James's Place lost ground despite saying it swung to a full-year profit, while consumer healthcare firm Haleon was down even as it reiterated its full-year outlook after posting improved full-year sales and profits.

Ocado slid even as it announced narrower full-year losses driven by strong rises in revenue at its retail and technology divisions and saying it expected to turn cash flow positive by fiscal 2026.

Howden Joinery was weaker as it reported broadly stable full-year profits and revenue in a "challenging" market, but announced a new £100m share buyback.

Wood Group fell as it announced the appointment of Iain Torrens as interim chief financial officer following the sudden resignation of Arvind Balan last week, which was put down to an incorrect description of his professional qualifications in various statements in the public domain.

The appointment comes just days after Wood Group confirmed it had received a takeover approach from Dubai's Sidara.

Taylor Wimpey edged lower as it posted a fall in annual revenues and profits but said it had seen a "robust" start to the new year as demand picked up.

On the upside, Rolls-Royce surged to the top of the FTSE 100 as it lifted mid-term guidance and unveiled a £1bn share buyback as annual profits jumped, driven by its civil aerospace unit. It also announced its first dividend since the Covid-19 pandemic.

London Stock Exchange and Aviva both gained on the back of better-than-expected results, while Serco and Man Group were also higher after results.



Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,705.32 -0.30%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,440.65 -0.75%
techMARK (TASX) 4,732.13 -0.44%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 730.00p 15.69%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 11,470.00p 3.33%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 637.00p 2.51%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,178.00p 1.11%
BAE Systems (BA.) 1,358.50p 1.00%
Aviva (AV.) 527.00p 0.42%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 11,922.00p 0.34%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 327.50p 0.09%
Compass Group (CPG) 2,781.00p 0.07%
BT Group (BT.A) 154.85p 0.06%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

WPP (WPP) 644.40p -16.33%
Barclays (BARC) 296.90p -3.90%
St James's Place (STJ) 1,088.00p -3.80%
Diageo (DGE) 2,105.50p -3.55%
Haleon (HLN) 384.70p -2.73%
Rightmove (RMV) 642.00p -2.22%
Spirax Group (SPX) 7,325.00p -1.94%
Croda International (CRDA) 3,248.00p -1.90%
Kingfisher (KGF) 249.20p -1.85%
Whitbread (WTB) 2,660.00p -1.74%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Serco Group (SRP) 166.10p 4.47%
Man Group (EMG) 216.20p 3.35%
Discoverie Group (DSCV) 585.00p 2.81%
Petershill Partners (PHLL) 271.00p 2.46%
Dr. Martens (DOCS) 68.75p 2.31%
W.A.G Payment Solutions (WPS) 62.00p 1.64%
Twentyfour Income Fund Limited Ord Red (TFIF) 112.20p 1.63%
Indivior (INDV) 659.00p 1.23%
Greencoat UK Wind (UKW) 112.10p 0.81%
Templeton Emerging Markets Inv Trust (TEM) 178.00p 0.79%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Ocado Group (OCDO) 299.00p -10.26%
Howden Joinery Group (HWDN) 789.50p -5.90%
RHI Magnesita N.V. (DI) (RHIM) 3,555.00p -5.33%
4Imprint Group (FOUR) 5,160.00p -4.97%
Ashmore Group (ASHM) 148.80p -4.00%
Wood Group (John) (WG.) 35.52p -3.64%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 93.70p -3.40%
Blackrock Throgmorton Trust (THRG) 558.00p -2.96%
Kainos Group (KNOS) 727.00p -2.94%
Future (FUTR) 917.00p -2.91%

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