U.K. Equities Close Lower on Friday as Gold Prices Rise
Investing.com – U.K. equities were lower at the close on Friday, as losses in the technology and consumer goods sectors propelled shares lower. The FTSE 100 index was down 0.87% at the close in London.
The session saw some mixed performances among individual stocks. The best performers included Endeavor Mining PLC, which rose 2.28%, Flutter Entertainment PLC, which added 1.15%, and BAE Systems Inc, which rose 0.99%.
On the other hand, Ocado Group PLC was among the worst performers, falling 8.99%, followed by St. James’s Place PLC, which fell 4.28%, and JD Sports Fashion PLC, which fell 4.03%.
Overall, 1,199 stocks on the London Stock Exchange fell, outnumbering the number of stocks that closed higher at 551. At the same time, 685 stocks did not see any significant change in value.
Meanwhile, the price of gold futures June options contract rose 1.69% to $2,347.40. In the futures market, WTI crude oil futures contract for May delivery rose 0.98% to $87.44, while the June London Brent crude oil futures contract rose 1.13% to $91.67.
In currency markets, GBP/USD exchange rate remained steady at 1.26, while EUR/GBP was unchanged at 0.86.
The U.S. dollar index futures also saw a slight increase of 0.10% to trade at 104.00, reflecting the global market trends on Friday.