London midday: FTSE flat as investors eye resumption of US-Iran talks

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were flat by midday on Tuesday, with investors cautiously optimistic that the US and Iran will resume peace talks, despite the start of the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. The FTSE 100 was steady at 10,578.28, while Brent crude was down 0.5% at $98.89 a barrel.

Sentiment improved somewhat after US president Donald Trump said Iran had called and wants to make a deal following failed peace talks between the two in Islamabad over the weekend. Speaking to reporters at the White House on Monday, Trump said Iran wanted to a make a deal "very badly". He also insisted that any framework depends on Iran not having a nuclear weapon.

Investors were also mulling a Reuters report suggesting that negotiating teams from ‌the US and Iran could return to Islamabad later this week to resume peace talks.

Separately, Israeli and Lebanese officials were due to meet in the US later in the day for peace talks.

Susannah Streeter, chief market strategist at Wealth Club, said: "While the key Strait of Hormuz remains blockaded, with the US accusing Iran of economic terrorism, there are signs that behind-the-scenes negotiations are being prepared between Tehran and Washington ahead of the end of the fortnight-long ceasefire in a week's time.

"In addition, Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors are scheduled to meet in Washington, a key development given Tehran's insistence that any ceasefire must include a cessation of all strikes.

"The duration of restrictions on Iran's nuclear activity appears to be a major sticking point. The US is reportedly calling for a 20-year halt to development, while Iran is only willing to concede five years. So, while the door appears open to a deal, particularly given political pressure in the US, there remains a significant gap between the positions of both sides. As a result, the squeeze on energy supplies is likely to remain a disruptive force, and markets may stay jittery."

On home shores, industry data showed that retail sales shone in March after shoppers splashed out on food and drink for Easter.

According to the latest BRC-KPMG retail sales monitor, total UK sales rose by 3.6% in the five weeks to 4 April, compared to growth of 1.1% a year previously and a 1.1% rise in February 2026.

Driving the rise were food sales, which spiked 6.8%. Non-food sales edged up 0.9% higher. Sales in store were 1.4% higher, compared to the modest 0.1% uplift seen online.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, said: "An early Easter provided a much-needed boost to food sales as families came together over the long weekend. Non-food was more uneven: demand was robust for computers, toys and homeware, but clothing and footwear continued to struggle."

Easter fell into the March reporting period in 2026, but the later timing in 2025 meant it was included in the April period in 2025.

However, Dickinson added: "Retailers hope that the Middle East ceasefire will bring lasting stability, but the outlook remains uncertain. Damage to supply chains has already been done and rising costs - from shipping and fertiliser to insurance and commodities - are piling yet more pressure onto already stretched retailers."

In equity markets, Intertek surged to the top of the FTSE 100 as it reiterated its full-year guidance and said it was considering splitting into two businesses. The company has launched a strategic review to evaluate the creation of two specialist businesses, Intertek Energy & Infrastructure and Intertek Testing & Assurance, either by demerger or a sale.

Oxford Instruments rallied after saying it expects to deliver a "resilient" full-year performance in line with market expectations for revenue of £420.7m and adjusted operating profit of £71.3m.

BP fell despite saying that the first-quarter oil trading result was set to be "exceptional", after the outbreak of war in the Middle East caused energy prices to soar.

Upstream oil production and operations was forecast to be slightly lower than the fourth quarter, and gas and low carbon energy slightly higher. But the spike in energy prices at the end of the quarter meant BP now expects stronger realised refining margins in the range of +$0.1bn to $0.2bn.

Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said: "The muted reaction to BP's stock price to this news is down to two factors, 1, the oil price is lower, which is weighing on the energy sector, and 2, this could attract the eyes of the government eager to fill their coffers, so BP should expect a hefty tax bill."

Tobacco company Imperial Brands tumbled as it reiterated its full‑year guidance but cautioned that the conflict in the Middle East has resulted in "a more uncertain geopolitical and macro environment".

It said that while there has been no material business impact to date, the potential future impact during the second half remains uncertain. It also said it expects losses from NGPs to be "moderately higher". British American Tobacco also lost ground.

Recruiter PageGroup was little changed as it said first-quarter gross profit fell 3.9% to £187m as an uncertain economic environment in Europe and the Middle East offset growth in Asia and the Americas.

In broker note action, miner Glencore was boosted by an upgrade to 'buy' at HSBC, while Standard Chartered gained after an upgrade to 'outperform' by BNP Paribas.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,578.28 -0.04% FTSE 250 (MCX) 22,530.87 1.14% techMARK (TASX) 5,872.31 0.40%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Intertek Group (ITRK) 4,292.00p 12.60% Metlen Energy & Metals (MTLN) 34.67p 4.08% Fresnillo (FRES) 3,625.00p 2.92% Entain (ENT) 558.60p 2.83% Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,165.80p 2.60% Diageo (DGE) 1,484.60p 2.48% Experian (EXPN) 2,666.00p 2.40% Relx plc (REL) 2,567.00p 2.39% InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 142.00p 2.38% Halma (HLMA) 4,226.00p 2.30%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,868.00p -6.93% British American Tobacco (BATS) 4,164.00p -4.40% Tesco (TSCO) 474.15p -2.10% BAE Systems (BA.) 2,205.00p -1.78% Airtel Africa (AAF) 375.20p -1.26% 3i Group (III) 2,723.50p -1.21% Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 347.30p -1.11% Haleon (HLN) 357.10p -0.89% National Grid (NG.) 1,307.40p -0.88% Shell (SHEL) 3,440.50p -0.73%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,019.00p 8.68% Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 329.40p 8.21% THG (THG) 33.22p 7.79% Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 43.36p 6.48% Hays (HAS) 31.02p 5.99% Raspberry PI Holdings (RPI) 535.00p 5.61% Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 303.20p 4.91% International Workplace Group (IWG) 192.70p 4.83% Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) 109.90p 4.27% Oxford Biomedica (OXB) 596.00p 4.20%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Energean (ENOG) 852.00p -2.80% AO World (AO.) 92.60p -1.49% Ithaca Energy (ITH) 253.20p -1.36% Diversified Energy Company (DI) (DEC) 1,210.00p -1.14% Drax Group (DRX) 862.80p -1.08% The Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited (TRIG) 66.85p -0.82% Ruffer Investment Company Ltd Red PTG Pref Shares (RICA) 307.50p -0.65% Harbour Energy (HBR) 281.20p -0.64% AEP Plantations (AEP) 1,880.00p -0.42% Twentyfour Income Fund Limited Ord Red (TFIF) 111.00p -0.36%