A slowdown in the pace of the UK economy was today confirmed in updated figures for the second quarter.
On the corporate front, ASOS shares fell after it forecast earnings towards the lower end of guidance.
Meanwhile, the price of gold today set another new record as the retreat for Brent Crude oil continued ahead of this week’s OPEC+ meeting.
FTSE 100 Live Tuesday
- Royal Mail owner in PayPoint deal
- ASOS earnings disappoint
- GDP slowdown confirmed
Market update: Oil giants struggle in weaker FTSE 100, ASOS down 9%
10:07 , Graeme EvansA strong quarter for the FTSE 100 index and other stock markets is ending on a cautious note ahead of a potential shutdown of US government.
Barring a funding deal in Congress tonight, around a quarter of federal spending will be affected alongside the collection and release of economic data.
The uncertainty led to another record gold price, which at one point rose above $3860 an ounce as the precious metal headed for its best month in 14 years.
The price later slipped back amid a broad-based retreat for the commodity sector, with Brent Crude down another 1.4% to $66.14 a barrel.
The benchmark fell 3% yesterday on speculation that OPEC+ members will sanction another big production increase at their meeting this weekend.
BP shares fell another 1% or 4.7p to 429.9p and Shell dipped 24p to 2672p, denting hopes that the FTSE 100 index might make a fresh push for record territory.
London’s top flight, which is up by more than 5% in the quarter and 13% for the year to date, fell 21.98 points to 9277.86.
Other fallers included BT Group, which dropped 2% or 4.3p to 189.05p, and Diageo with a reverse of 21.5p to 1746.5p.
The FTSE 250 index fell 3.84 points to 21,862.64, with PayPoint the best performing mid-cap following a rise of 8% or 56p to 730p.
The surge came as Royal Mail owner IDS disclosed a £43.9 million investment that will see it take a 49% stake in Coll/business/business-news/royal-mail-government-b1250366.html.
Around 8000 Collect+ stores will be rebranded to a Royal Mail Shop as part of the agreement, which also results in a special dividend for PayPoint shareholders.
Elsewhere, ASOS shares slipped 9% or 26p to 267p after it announced that full-year earnings will be towards the lower end of its guidance range.
The fast fashion retailer, which backed 2026 targets amid ongoing strategic progress, retains the support of Berenberg analysts after they maintained the bank’s Buy rating and 600p price target.
Trade deficit in goods sets record £56.6bn
09:13 , Graeme EvansThe UK’s trade deficit in goods ballooned to a record £56.6 billion in the three months after Donald Trump launched his “liberation day” blizzard of tariffs, official figures show today.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said UK exports of physical goods, excluding precious metals, slumped by £6.5 billion to £93.6 billion in the April to June quarter.
Imports of goods fell slightly from £150.8 billion in the first quarter to £150.2 billion in the second quarter.
The deficit was the biggest since records began in 1946, the ONS said.
The ONS said the biggest falls were in the semi-manufactured goods, finished manufactured goods , and oil categories, although there was no further breakdown.
Royal Mail owner strikes Collect+ deal
08:40 , Graeme EvansAround 8000 Collect+ convenience stores are to be rebranded to a Royal Mail Shop after the delivery giant’s owner bought a stake in the parcel service firm.
International Distribution Services is to acquire a 49% stake in Collect+ with a £43.9 million investment.
Collect+, which has a network of more than 14,000 locations made up of newsagents, convenience stores, supermarkets and petrol stations, was bought out by PayPoint in 2020.
The new high street shops will sell Royal Mail postage over the counter for the first time, meaning customers can pay in person rather than online beforehand.
The FTSE 250-listed shares of PayPoint rose 6% or 43p to 717p.
FTSE 100 lower, PayPoint up 6% on Royal Mail tie-up
08:33 , Graeme EvansThe FTSE 100 index is down 9.63 points to 9290.21, with BP shares among the shares under pressure after a decline of 3.6p to 431p.
AstraZeneca, Burberry and BT Group also opened about 1% lower.
On the risers board, GSK lifted 13p to 1531p and Rolls-Royce advanced by 10.5p to 1174p.
In the FTSE 250 index, PayPoint shares rose 6% or 42p to 716p after Royal Mail owner IDS agreed to take a 49% stake in the company’s Collect+ operation.
As a result of the investment worth £43.9 million, PayPoint said it would pay a special dividend of 50p a share.
Elsewhere, ASOS shares fell 28p to 265p after announcing that full-year earnings will be towards the lower end of its guidance range.
ASOS earnings at lower end of guidance, backs strategic progress
07:53 , Graeme EvansFast fashion retailer ASOS today said a jump in annual earnings is set to be towards the lower end of its guidance range.
The group reported significant strategic progress in the 2025 financial year, with its gross profit margin up 350 basis points. This was driven by a focus on higher full-price sales mix and lower markdown activity.
It recorded a lower-than-expected gross merchandise value, with group revenue slightly below consensus estimates as ASOS said it “continues to focus on higher quality sales against a soft consumer backdrop”.
Adjusted earnings rose more than 60% year-on-year but are expected to be towards the lower end of the £130 million to £150 million guided range.
It remains confident in delivering 2026 adjusted earnings and free cash flow in line with consensus forecasts, supported by further gross margin progress.
Non-food prices drive up shop inflation - BRC
07:21 , Graeme EvansShop price inflation has risen to 1.4% from August’s rate of 0.9%, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC)-NIQ Shop Price Monitor.
The increase came despite food inflation holding steady at 4.2%, with non-food prices 0.1% lower than a year ago compared with 0.8% cheaper in August.
BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said: “Households are finding shopping increasingly expensive. The impact on retailers and their supply chain of both global factors and higher national insurance and wage costs is playing out in prices for consumers.
“The new packaging tax, set to take effect in October, will put further upward pressure on inflation.”
GDP slowdown confirmed in Q2
07:08 , Graeme EvansThe UK economy expanded by an unrevised 0.3% in the second quarter of the year, updated figures from the Office for National Statistics showed today.
The performance compared with qaurter-on-quarter growth of 0.7% in the first three months of the year.
GDP rose by 1.4% on a year-on-year basis, up from the previous estimate of 1.2%.
ONS Director of Economic Statistics Liz McKeown said: “In the latest quarter we saw an increase in the household saving ratio, very little growth in consumer spending and a slight fall in output for consumer facing services, despite growth in services overall.”
Oil price reverse continues, Wall Street higher
07:01 , Graeme EvansWall Street markets finished higher yesterday, despite the threat of a US government shutdown if Congress fails to approve a funding deal by tonight.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%, while a gain of 2% for Nvidia helped the S&P 500 index to finish 0.3% higher. The Nasdaq Composite added 0.5%.
The FTSE 100 Index closed up 15.01 points or 0.2% at 9299.84, having earlier been on track to beat the previous record high of 9321.40.
London’s top flight is seen 0.1% lower at today’s opening bell.
Energy stocks weighed on the FTSE 100 after the price of Brent Crude fell by 3% on speculation that Opec+ members will increase quotas at a meeting later this week.
Brent Crude fell another 0.4% to $66.80 a barrel this morning, while gold moved 1% higher to a record $3869 an ounce.
