Lunchtime market roundup: Shares down as oil up amid MidEast tensions

Stock prices in London were lower at Wednesday midday as tensions in the Middle East escalated and the Brent oil price rose, while data showed inflation in the UK and eurozone accelerated during July.

The FTSE 100 index was 23.01 points, 0.2%, at 10,705.03. The FTSE 250 was down 88.80 points, 0.4%, at 24,472.63, and the AIM all-share was down 1.05 points, 0.1%, at 793.20.

The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.3% at 1,064.20, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.5% at 21,280.27, and the Cboe small companies was down 0.4% at 18,986.37.

In European equities on Wednesday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.3%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was down 0.1%.

Eurozone inflation accelerated in July, Eurostat final figures confirmed, as energy and services prices picked up.

Annual consumer price inflation in the single currency area rose to 2.9% in July from 2.8% in June, matching the flash estimate and accelerating from 2.0% a year earlier.

On a monthly basis, consumer prices increased 0.2%.

Across the wider EU, annual inflation accelerated to 3.0% from 2.9% in June and 2.4% a year earlier.

Energy prices rose 10.3% annually in the eurozone in July, accelerating from 8.5% in June.

Earlier on Wednesday, data showed consumer prices index inflation in the UK rose 2.9% in the 12 months to July, accelerating from 2.6% in June and in line with the FXStreet-cited consensus.

The pound was quoted at USD1.3561 at midday on Wednesday, higher than USD1.3539 at the London equities close on Tuesday. Against the euro, sterling fell to EUR1.1682 from EUR1.1693 a day prior.

The euro traded at USD1.1608 early Wednesday, higher than USD1.1578 late Tuesday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY159.07 versus JPY159.62.

Back in London, Weir rose 1.7% to the top of the FTSE 100.

At the other end of the blue-chip index, Smith & Nephew fell 3.4% after announcing that Chief Financial Officer John Rogers will leave the company on September 30 to take up an external role in the US.

Rogers stepped down from the board with immediate effect, while Senior Vice President Finance & Group Controller Pierre Palassian was appointed interim CFO. The medical devices maker has begun a search for a permanent successor.

IG Group Holdings lost 2.9% after UBS cut its price target to 1,700p from 2,000p. Entain fell 1.7%, while M&G was also down 1.7% after cutting its stake in Taylor Maritime Investments to 4.9% from 8.3%.

On the FTSE 250, Trainline plunged 15% after the UK Competition & Markets Authority opened a formal consumer protection investigation into how mandatory booking fees are presented on its platform.

The regulator is investigating whether mandatory train and coach booking fees are included in the total upfront price shown to customers at the start of the booking process under the Digital Markets, Competition & Consumers Act.

The probe forms part of a wider crackdown on so-called "drip pricing". The CMA stressed it has not concluded that Trainline breached consumer law. If an infringement is ultimately found, the regulator can order customer compensation and impose fines of up to 10% of global turnover.

Ithaca Energy climbed 5.8% after upgrading its 2026 dividend guidance to between USD500 million and USD530 million from USD470 million to USD520 million following record second-quarter production.

The North Sea producer reaffirmed full-year output guidance of between 120,000 and 130,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day and declared a first interim dividend of USD255 million. Ithaca also said its Rosebank project remains on track for first production in the first half of 2027.

Safestore Holdings fell 4.1% after Deutsche Bank cut the self-storage operator to 'hold' from 'buy' and lowered its price target to 700p from 880p, citing disappointing European self-storage trading since March.

Among London's smaller caps, Nuformix surged 43% to 0.20p after reporting positive results from an additional preclinical study of NXP002, its potential inhaled treatment for idiopathic and progressive pulmonary fibrosis.

The company said the study demonstrated substantial dose-related pulmonary exposure and achieved lung concentrations expected to provide pharmacological activity while limiting systemic exposure.

Defence Holdings rose 17% after Chief Executive Andrew Roughan published an open letter providing further detail on the company's £2.0 million cornerstone investment in the new UK Defence Fund. The investment announcement had sent its shares 16% lower on Monday.

Roughan said the investment is fully funded from existing resources and does not signal a need for additional equity funding for working capital.

The fund plans to invest between £250,000 and £1.0 million in minority stakes in early-stage defence technology companies, with five businesses already undergoing initial due diligence.

Roughan said the separate fund structure lets Defence Holdings share risk with third-party investors and pursue larger opportunities while staying focused on its core software-led defence technology operations.

In New York, stocks were called lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was called flat, the S&P 500 down 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.2%.

The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.70%, narrowing from 4.72%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 5.28%, narrowing from 5.30%.

Geopolitical tensions remained firmly in focus as Iran warned Gulf countries against helping the US military, while concerns mounted over the possibility of the Middle East conflict spreading further.

According to the Financial Times, Iran has drawn up contingency plans to target US military assets in southeastern Europe should US President Donald Trump escalate the conflict. Iranian officials reportedly identified US assets in Bulgaria and Cyprus as possible targets.

Meanwhile, Iran's armed forces warned Gulf countries on Wednesday against assisting the US military, hours after the United Arab Emirates announced it was suspending economic ties with Tehran following fresh attacks on shipping.

Iranian armed forces Chief of Staff Ali Abdollahi warned that "any assistance or facilitation provided to the aggressor US military amounts to participation in the US military operation", according to the Mehr news agency.

The warning followed the UAE's announcement on Tuesday that it was suspending all trade, commercial exchanges and financial transactions with Iran until further notice.

The Strait of Hormuz remained a key flashpoint. The framework agreement between the US and Iran aimed at reopening the vital energy and trade corridor has collapsed, while Trump on Tuesday insisted no talks are currently underway or planned with Tehran.

Brent crude traded at USD91.87 a barrel at midday on Wednesday, up from USD91.17 late Tuesday.

Gold was quoted at USD4,367.20 an ounce at midday on Wednesday, slightly higher than USD4,361.38 on Tuesday.

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