The trade turmoil caused by Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs continues to send shudders through financial markets.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 posted another fall near 3%, while European markets have reversed for a second successive session.
Fears over the impact of the tariffs on global demand also left the Brent Crude price at a three-year low.
Market update: FTSE 100 slump continues, NatWest down 5%
10:21 , Graeme EvansFearful investors dumped banking and mining stocks today as the slide for the FTSE 100 index and other benchmarks continued in the face of tariffs turmoil.
London’s top flight lost another 1.6% or 138.04 points to 8336.70, matching Thursday’s reverse as traders braced for another poor session on Wall Street.
Big GDP revisions on the back of Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs meant $2.4 trillion was wiped from the value of S&P 500 firms in yesterday’s sell-off.
The casualties included iPhone giant Apple, which slumped 9% on fears over the potential impact of tariffs of up to 54% in its Asia supply chain.
The uncertainty in the technology sector fuelled another grim session in Tokyo as the Nikkei 225 concluded its worst week since March 2020 with a fall of 2.7%.
European futures had pointed to a steady start but jitters quickly returned ahead of this afternoon’s US jobs market figures and a speech by the Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.
UBS said its base case is now for US GDP growth of less than 1% this year, an outcome that could include an intra-year recession.
The weaker global outlook and worries over future bad debt levels were among factors prompting investors to further reduce their exposure to the banking sector.
NatWest lost 5% or 24.5p to 428p, while the scale of tariffs facing major Asia economies caused Standard Chartered to lose another 41p to 958p and Hong Kong-based HSBC to retreat another 36p to 767.7p.
Barclays, which has US credit card and investment banking operations, fell another 12.75p to extend losses since Wednesday to more than 12% at 258.15p.
A further 2% decline in copper futures contributed to another poor session in the mining sector as Glencore reversed 6% or 17.05p to a four-year low at 243.75p and Anglo American declined 105.6p to 1898.4p.
Shell and BP also fell 3%, down 76p to 2591.5p and 11.35p to 389.1p respectively, after Brent Crude traded below $68 a barrel at its lowest level in three years.
The risk averse mood also left Rolls-Royce 25.6p lower at 720.4p and Asia-focused insurer Prudential 23.4p cheaper at 774p.
Investors continued their flight defensive sectors, with the shares of renewables giant SSE up 3% or 46.5p to 1699.5p and United Utilities ahead of 25.5p to 1096.5p.
Severn Trent followed yesterday’s rise of 6% with a further gain of 2% or 46p to 2739p.
Retailers also fared well as Primark owner Associated British Foods rallied 41p to 2024p, Marks & Spencer advanced 7p to 378p and JD Sports Fashion lifted 1.4p to 66.7p.
The FTSE 250 index fell 1% or 195.86 points to 19,014.65, with Metro Bank and cruise ship business Carnival among those down 3%.
FTSE 100 down more than 1%, banks hit by fresh selling
09:03 , Graeme EvansBanks and miners are at the forefront of the latest round of selling, with NatWest one of the biggest fallers after a decline of 4% or 19.7p to 432.8p.
Barclays lost another 4% or 10.85p to 260.05p, meaning shares have fallen by 12% since Wednesday.
Standard Chartered also remained under pressure, losing 38p to 961p as its Asia operating region has been heavily targeted by US tariffs.
Demand fears have left the shares of Glencore at their lowest level in four years, with the miner down 5% or 12.9p to 247.9p in today’s session.
Shell and BP fell 2% following Brent Crude’s decline below $70 a barrel while British Airways owner IAG shed 5.1p to stand at 242.7p, its cheapest since November.
The FTSE 100 index is 97.33 lower at 8377.41, in line with the 1.1% decline of benchmarks in Paris and Frankfurt.
SSE shares up 3% as investors seek safer havens
08:35 , Graeme EvansInvestors have continued their flight to defensive sectors, sending renewables giant SSE up 3% or 50.5p to 1703.5p and United Utilities 19p higher to 1090p.
Severn Trent consolidated yesterday’s 6% rise with a gain of 2% or 63p to 2756p.
British American Tobacco rose 73p to 3255p and Imperial Brands lifted 56p to 2956p, while Unilever put on 67p to 4851p and Haleon added 5.4p to 400.1p.
Drinks giant Diageo rallied 42p to 2077p, having fallen from more than 2500p at the start of this year.
FTSE 100 down 0.7%, Brent Crude price at three-year low
08:15 , Graeme EvansThe FTSE 100 index has followed yesterday’s reverse of 1.55% with a fall of 0.7% or 63.07 points, leaving the benchmark at its lowest level since January at 8411.67.
Barclays fell another 3%, BP dropped 2% and Anglo American reversed 3%.
The Nikkei 225 index closed 2.75% lower, meaning the Tokyo index has lost 9% this week after the US announced tariffs of 24% on Japanese goods.
Brent Crude also weakened another 2% to stand at $68.81 a barrel, the lowest level since November 2021.
Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Derren Nathan said: “The three-year lows are a result of not just demand fears in the face of mounting trade restrictions but also the impending daily increase in output of over 400,000 barrels per day planned by eight key OPEC+ nations next week.”
Wall Street seen lower ahead of jobs report
07:46 , Graeme EvansWall Street futures have stayed in the red after yesterday’s tariffs slide as traders turn their attention to this afternoon’s monthly jobs report.
Economists are looking for nonfarm payrolls growth of about 135,000, below the 151,000 reported for February. The unemployment rate is set to remain near 4.1%.
IG Index warned that any signs of weakness are likely to intensify the risk-off attitude among investors, particularly after Wednesday’s tariffs sparked a wide scale rewriting of US GDP and inflation forecasts.
A speech by Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell at about 4.30pm UK time will also be closely watched after Wall Street’s worst single-day loss since March 2020.
About $2.4 trillion was wiped from S&P 500 firms, while the dollar slumped amid a loss of confidence in US trade policy.
IG now sees the FTSE 100 index falling about 29 points, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average about 158 points lower and the Nasdaq 100 off 43 points.
BP chair to step down
07:28 , Graeme EvansBP chair Helge Lund has announced his intention to step down, the oil giant said today.
Lund has overseen two resets of BP’s strategy since taking on the role in January 2019. He joined the board in July 2018.
The latest reset took place in February, when BP unveiled a new financial framework that scaled back investment in transition businesses.
Lund said: "Having fundamentally reset our strategy, BP’s focus now is on delivering the strategy at pace, improving performance and growing shareholder value.
“Now is the right time to start the process to find my successor and enable an orderly and seamless handover.”
The succession process is being led by Aviva chief executive Amanda Blanc in her capacity as senior independent director.
It is expected that the successful candidate will join the board and work with Lund to ensure an orderly transition. This means he is most likely to leave BP during 2026.
Nikkei 225 slump continues, FTSE 100 set for steady start
07:10 , Graeme EvansThe tariffs sell-off continued during Asia trading hours today as the Nikkei 225 fell by another 2.8%, matching the decline seen yesterday.
The performance has left the Tokyo benchmark on track for its worst week since the start of the pandemic. Stock markets are closed in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
The FTSE 100 index is set to open broadly unchanged, having outperformed during yesterday’s session with a decline of 1.6%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped 4%, the S&P 500 fell 4.8% and the Nasdaq Composite lost 6% by the end of yesterday’s dramatic Wall Street session.
Brent Crude is below $70 a barrel following a 6% drop in the previous session, while the dollar has steadied after yesterday’s 2% fall against a basket of major currencies.
