London open: Stocks drift lower as Trump tariff deadline looms

London stocks drifted lower in early trade on Friday as Donald Trump’s 9 July tariff deadline loomed, with trading expected to remain quiet as US markets will be closed for Independence Day.

At 0835 BST, the FTSE 100 was down 0.3% at 8,798.44.

Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "Optimism is evaporating at the end of the week, as the US tariff deadline looms and the signs are that many countries will face higher duties than expected. There’s a distinct lack of Friday fizz for the FTSE 100, as investors mull repercussions for the global economy. Investors are also assessing the implications of the passing of Trump’s big tax cut bill which will add to the mountain of US debt.

"The Trump administration is running out of time to do specific detailed trade deals. and the President has said that instead blocs of nations will be informed by letter that they’ll face tariff rates of around 20-30%. It appears we are returning to a diluted form of blanket tariff policy, which sparked marked mayhem in April. Headline rates threatened have come down markedly but the disruption to trade and growth around the world is still set to be significant.

"Talks with the European Union are continuing and although a deal is expected, it’s likely to be an eleventh-hour agreement. The July 9th deadline won’t mark the end of the tariff story. There are set to be plenty more twists to come, and there is still a lot of expectation baked in that Trump will eventually retreat further from these latest tariffs threats."

UK corporate news was thin on the ground.

Heavily-weighted miners were under the cosh, with Anglo American, Glencore and Antofagasta all lower.

Drug maker AstraZeneca nudged down despite saying that its Imfinzi asset has been approved in the EU as the first and only perioperative immunotherapy for muscle-invasive bladder cancer.

On the upside, Drax was a high riser as JPMorgan resumed coverage of the shares with an ‘overweight’ rating and 1,000p price target after a period of restriction.

The bank, which placed the shares on "positive catalyst watch", said its analysis continues to support its view that the company "is well positioned to create value as intermittency increases in the UK power grid".

Softcat edged slightly higher after Berenberg upgraded the shares to ‘buy’ from ‘hold’ on the basis of its continued strong operational performance, consistent ability to beat market expectations and the circa 15% sell-off in its shares over the past two weeks.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,798.44 -0.28%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 21,612.24 -0.42%
techMARK (TASX) 5,080.46 -0.35%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Vodafone Group (VOD) 80.14p 1.14%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,547.00p 0.48%
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (DI) (CCEP) 7,020.00p 0.43%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 282.40p 0.43%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,861.00p 0.42%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 3,980.00p 0.40%
BT Group (BT.A) 195.95p 0.28%
Tesco (TSCO) 405.60p 0.15%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,075.00p 0.14%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,494.00p 0.13%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Ashtead Group (AHT) 4,696.00p -2.15%
Anglo American (AAL) 2,199.00p -2.01%
Glencore (GLEN) 300.25p -1.94%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,898.00p -1.86%
Persimmon (PSN) 1,207.00p -1.59%
Spirax Group (SPX) 6,090.00p -1.46%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 3,626.00p -1.31%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) 1,936.00p -1.22%
Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 428.50p -1.22%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,073.00p -1.20%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Discoverie Group (DSCV) 719.00p 4.35%
Trainline (TRN) 294.60p 4.25%
Rank Group (RNK) 139.80p 1.75%
Baltic Classifieds Group (BCG) 327.00p 0.93%
Greggs (GRG) 1,715.00p 0.88%
Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) (BPT) 324.20p 0.87%
VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd. (VOF) 430.50p 0.82%
Drax Group (DRX) 689.00p 0.80%
Assura (AGR) 50.60p 0.80%
Kier Group (KIE) 202.00p 0.50%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

CMC Markets (CMCX) 244.50p -4.86%
Moonpig Group (MOON) 235.00p -2.89%
Pets at Home Group (PETS) 247.20p -2.60%
Vistry Group (VTY) 624.00p -2.01%
Me Group International (MEGP) 224.00p -1.97%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,069.00p -1.75%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 1,990.00p -1.73%
Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 344.20p -1.60%
IntegraFin Holding (IHP) 319.00p -1.54%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 242.20p -1.46%