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Mining stocks shone on Wednesday morning in London, as shares traded mostly higher in general ahead of UK composite purchasing managers’ index data to be out shortly. The FTSE 100 index opened up 130.45 points, 1.3%, at 10,349.56. The FTSE 250 was up 209.29 points, 0.9%, at 22,653.10, and the AIM all-share was up 5.63 points, 0.7%, at 804.91. The Cboe UK 100 was up 1.4% at 1,031.87, and the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.8% at 19,633.77, but the Cboe small companies was marginally lower at 18,293.59. US President Donald Trump said he was halting the military operation to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz after just one day, in a bid to reach a deal with Iran to end the Middle East war. The US leader said on Truth Social that he was pausing ’Project Freedom’ after a request by mediator Pakistan and other countries, saying that ‘great progress has been made toward a complete and final agreement’ with Tehran. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, meanwhile, claimed that the US has completed its offensive operations against Iran. This followed the White House’s informing lawmakers that the war had terminated due to the ceasefire, avoiding a legal requirement to ask Congress to authorise a conflict that goes beyond 60 days. Brent oil was quoted at $107.78 a barrel early in London on Wednesday, down from $110.70 late on Tuesday. On the FTSE 100, oil majors BP and Shell lost 1.9% and 0.9%, respectively. ‘Oil prices are entering a corrective phase after a strong rally in recent weeks, as the market begins to price in a temporary easing of some geopolitical risks, along with profit-taking pressure at elevated price levels,’ commented XS Market Analyst Linh Tran, adding: ‘The most important factor at the moment remains supply risk related to the Middle East and the Strait of Hormuz...any sign of disruption could quickly bring the geopolitical risk premium back into the market. ‘Therefore, although oil prices are currently correcting, the market has not yet shifted into a sustained bearish phase, as physical supply remains vulnerable to transportation risks and regional instability.’ Gold was quoted higher at $4,668.83 an ounce against $4,576.51. Miners were among the FTSE 100’s biggest winners, with Fresnillo up 4.7%, Anglo American up 4.4%, Endeavour up 4.3% and Antofagasta up 3.9%. Diageo was among the index’s highest stocks, up 3.4%. The alcoholic beverage company, whose brands include Guiness and Baileys, maintained its full-year guidance which includes a 2% to 3% decrease in organic net sales, and flat to low-single-digit organic growth in operating profit. For its third quarter, net sales increase 2.3% annually to $4.48 billion, with organic growth of 0.3% and a 0.4% increase in volumes, and Diageo said its ’Accelerate’ programme is on track to deliver around $300 million in savings for the year. Smith & Nephew led the laggers, down 3.3%. This was despite the medical device company announced a new $500 million share buyback and reported $1.50 billion in first-quarter revenue, up 6.6% annually or 3.1% on an underlying basis. Smith & Nephew maintained its full-year outlook, which includes underlying revenue growth of around 6% and trading profit growth of around 8%. Kingfisher was down 0.5%. The B&Q owner announced that Chief Executive Officer Thierry Garnier has resigned, but ‘will remain fully focused on his current role’ throughout his 12-month notice period. Garnier is leaving to take up the CEO role at Ahold Delhaize, down 2.0% in Amsterdam, where he will succeed Frans Muller at the retail and wholesale holding company at its annual general meeting in April next year. In European equities on Wednesday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 1.2%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 1.3%. France’s industrial production increase outperformed expectations in March, data published by the National Institute of Statistics & Economic Studies showed. The country’s industrial production grew 1.0% on-month in March, beating the FXStreet-cited market consensus of a 0.5% uptick, and compared to a 0.9% monthly decline in February which was revised from a 0.7% fall. Manufacturing grew 1.2% in March after a 0.1% dip in February, with February revised down from a previously reported no-change result. Notably, the manufacture of coke and refined petroleum products jumped 6.3% in March, after 1.6% growth in February, the latter revised down from 1.8%. The pound was quoted higher at $1.3590 early Wednesday, compared to $1.3569 on Tuesday. Against the euro, sterling declined to €1.1582 from €1.1586 a day prior. The euro stood at $1.1728, higher against $1.1707. Against the yen, the dollar was trading lower at JP¥156.41 compared to JP¥157.66. In Asia on Wednesday, Japan’s financial markets were closed for Constitution Memorial Day. In China, the Shanghai Composite was up 1.2%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was up 0.9%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 1.3%. In the US on Tuesday, Wall Street ended higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.7%, the S&P 500 up 0.8% and the Nasdaq Composite up 258.33, 1.0%. The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.37%, narrowing from 4.42%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 4.95%, narrowing from 5.00%. Still to come on Wednesday’s economic calendar, the morning’s highlights are the UK composite PMI and eurozone producer inflation. Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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