The FTSE 100 fell 0.49% on July 9 as a collapsed U.S.-Iran ceasefire soured sentiment and left London trailing its European peers. AstraZeneca weighed on the index after an experimental heart drug missed its trial goals.
London's blue-chip index dropped 0.49% as of 03:30 ET, lagging European markets after fresh U.S. strikes on Iran rattled investors. Germany's DAX rose 0.61% and France's CAC 40 gained 0.45%. Sterling, meanwhile, strengthened 0.30% against the dollar to $1.3426.
Renewed strikes reset the risk mood
U.S. Central Command said it struck approximately 90 Iranian military targets overnight, hitting air defense systems, missile and drone storage sites, and coastal naval infrastructure. It marked the second consecutive night of operations aimed at degrading Tehran's ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran hit back at U.S.-allied Gulf states. Kuwait's military said its air defenses were intercepting incoming drones and missiles, Bahrain activated air raid sirens, and Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed attacks on both countries, with Qatar also reportedly targeted.
President Trump declared at the NATO summit in Ankara that the ceasefire was over after Tehran resumed attacking commercial tankers. According to Investing.com, Vance stated: "If they shoot at ships, we're going to knock the hell out of them."
Oil eases while gold advances
Despite the escalation, crude retreated. Brent crude slipped 0.53% to $77.58 a barrel, and WTI fell 0.48% to $73.11. Gold moved the other way, with futures up 0.85% to $4,116.92 an ounce and spot gold up 0.74% to $4,107.82.
Company moves drag on the index
AstraZeneca fell sharply after its experimental heart drug Wainua failed to meet primary objectives in late-stage trials. Capita said civil service pension contract failures would cut annual adjusted operating profit by £25-40 million and free cash flow by £35-50 million. In contrast, Computacenter forecast first-half adjusted pretax profit would nearly double year-over-year.
Source: Investing.com
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