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UK retail stocks opened higher on Tuesday after Worldpanel data showed that grocery sales rose in March; meanwhile investors await consumer price index inflation data from the eurozone. GDP is estimated to have increased by 1.4% annually in 2025, revised up from 1.3%, the ONS says, following unrevised growth of 1.1% in 2024. Total business investment for the fourth quarter fell 2.5% on-quarter, but this was better than consensus expectations for a larger 2.7% drop. The UK current account deficit, including trade in precious metals, widened by £7.7 billion to £18.4 billion, or 2.4% of GDP, in the fourth quarter. It was, however, lower than the consensus of a sharper increase to £23.4 billion. Still, AJ Bell’s Danni Hewson noted that the ‘UK economy only managed to eke out 0.1% growth during the final quarter of 2025’. ‘There’s always the possibility that [GDP] figures could be revised upwards, pointing to a more vibrant economy,’ she continued. ‘But there was no such fairytale end to 2025. ‘Even before the start of the conflict in the Middle East, which is set to reignite global inflation, the UK was struggling. Consumers were nervous as unemployment numbers edged up and though real household disposable income increased in the final months of the year, many people were still choosing to save any bit of spare cash in case of emergency...With the war in Iran now in its fifth week, a quick economic snap back seems impossible and the potential for recession more and more likely.’ Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer will chair a Cobra meeting on Tuesday afternoon, where senior ministers will discuss the economic impact of the Iran war. The FTSE 100 index opened up 13.08 points, 0.1%, at 10,141.04. The FTSE 250 was up 77.35 points, 0.4%, at 21,031.85, and the AIM all-share was down just 0.30 points at 709.82. The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.3% at 1,010.75, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.4% at 18,236.14, and the Cboe small companies was down 0.2% at 16,825.25. Retailers were high on the FTSE 100. Tesco rose 1.4%, J Sainsbury 1.1%, Associated British Foods 1.2% and Marks & Spencer 1.5%. UK annual house price growth accelerated to 2.2% in March, from 1.0% in February, Nationwide reported. Monthly price growth, seasonally adjusted, sped up to 0.9% from 0.3% and beat FXStreet-cited consensus for 0.6% growth. The average house price rose to £277,186 from £273,176. UK grocery sales rose in March on seasonal demand linked to Easter, while price inflation was steady but threatens to accelerate in the months to come due to the Middle East conflict, industry data showed on Tuesday. According to Worldpanel by Numerator, grocery sales increased 4.4% in the four weeks to March 22 compared with the same period a year earlier. Like-for-like annual grocery price inflation rate was 4.3%, where it stood in February, as concerns grow over the potential impact of the Middle East conflict on household costs. ‘Financial anxiety among British consumers was already running high before the conflict began. And with grocery inflation likely to increase and fuel costs rising sharply, the conditions that make shoppers feel vulnerable are only intensifying,’ Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel by Numerator, said. Rightmove rose 1.5%, while housebuilder Barratt Redrow rose 1.3%. On AIM, Rosebank opened in the green but slipped down 1.0%. The London-based, industrial and manufacturing-focused takeover vehicle announced plans to move to the London Main Market during May. Rosebank, which has a £3.13 billion market capitalisation, will be eligible for FTSE UK Index inclusion. Elsewhere, Future plummeted 23%. The Bath, England-based online magazine publisher, which owns price comparison website Go Compare, expects first-half revenue to be broadly in line with management expectations, but for second-half revenue to decline on-year, with the full-year Ebitda margin in the 25% to 27% range. Future also said that audience shifts derived from Google search have been more pronounced than anticipated, driving lower year-on-year sessions and negatively impacting higher-margin programmatic advertising and ecommerce revenue. It said this has led to PPC cost inflation across the industry. Back on the FTSE 100, as the Iran war continues, and with US President Donald Trump claiming that the US is negotiating with Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, defence firms were mixed, with Rolls-Royce down 0.5% but Babcock up 0.4%. Oil majors BP and Shell were down 0.2%. Brent oil was quoted at $107.11 a barrel early in London on Tuesday, down from $112.46 late Monday. Gold was quoted at $4,556.19 an ounce, higher against $4,541.34. Antofagasta led the FTSE 100, up 3.4%. Anglo American gained 2.2%, while Fresnillo and Endeavour rose 1.9%. In European equities on Tuesday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.3%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was down 0.2%. The pound was quoted at $1.3202 early Tuesday, higher compared to $1.3191 on Monday. Against the euro, sterling softened to €1.1513 from €1.1518 a day prior. The euro stood higher at $1.1468, against $1.1452. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at JP¥159.73 compared to JP¥159.53. In Asia on Tuesday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo was down 1.6%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.8%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was down 0.1%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 0.3%. In the US on Monday, Wall Street ended mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.1%, the S&P 500 down 0.4% and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.7%. The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.33%, narrowing from 4.34%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.89%, narrowing from 4.90%. Still to come on Tuesday’s economic calendar is eurozone consumer inflation, Canada’s GDP and the US house price index. Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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