London close: FTSE falls as BP, StanChart slump; payrolls eyed
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Tuesday 10 Feb 2026
(Sharecast News) - London stocks ended lower on Tuesday, weighed down by weak performances from BP and Standard Chartered, as political developments remained in focus and as investors eyed the upcoming release of the delayed US non-farm payrolls report.
The FTSE 100 closed down 0.3% at 10,353.84.
Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, said: "The FTSE 100 slipped on mixed results from some of the big hitters in the index."
He added that "despite continuing speculation about the fate of embattled prime minister Keir Starmer the pound and gilts steadied". On Monday, Starmer lost his director of communications a day after his chief of staff resigned amid the fallout from his decision to appoint Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US.
Investors were also on edge ahead of the release of the January non-farm payrolls report.
Axel Rudolph, chief technical analyst at IG, said market participants were focusing on the payrolls report and a plethora of FOMC member speeches on Wednesday "to gauge the trajectory of further Fed rate cuts".
Investors were also digesting the latest data from the US Commerce Department, which showed that retail sales were unexpectedly flat in December from November, versus expectations for a 0.4% increase.
On home shores, retail industry data showed that sales across the UK picked up strongly in January, as New Year promotions spurred consumer spending following two months of subdued growth.
According to the British Retail Consortium-KPMG monthly UK retail sales monitor, sales rose 2.7% year-on-year over the four weeks to 31 January.
That's up from the meagre 1.4% increase seen in November, as pre-Budget jitters and a weak Black Friday limited spend, and a 1.2% rise in December on the back of strong prior-year comparatives and people holding out for January sales.
It was also comfortably above the 12-month average growth rate of 2.3%.
In equity markets, BP gushed lower after the oil giant said it was putting its share buyback programme on hold. BP posted underlying replacement cost (RC) profit of $1.5bn in the fourth quarter, down sharply on the previous three months but up 32% year-on-year and largely in line with expectations.
Standard Chartered slumped as it announced the surprise departure of chief financial officer Diego De Giorgi and named Peter Burrill as interim group CFO. De Giorgi is stepping down with immediate effect to join Apollo as a partner and head of EMEA.
Barclays fell even as it lifted performance targets after annual profits jumped 13% as it also unveiled a new £1bn buyback.
Pre-tax profit came in at £9.1bn, with group income up 9% to £29.1bn also boosted by the acquisition of Tesco Bank. Barclays is now aiming for a return on tangible equity of more than 14% in 2028 and capital distributions of greater than £15bn in the next two years.
Dan Coatsworth said: "Barclays has outlined near and medium-term targets which imply stronger returns and big share buybacks. The targets sound impressive, but the market seems nonplussed by the overall package.
"There wasn't enough to blow the lights out in terms of recent performance, and so much good news is already in the price.
"The banking sector has been a major money maker for investors over the past two years and now needs powerful catalysts to sustain the upwards share price momentum. That means large upgrades to earnings forecasts, otherwise the shares could stall.
"Barclays' figures might warrant small upgrades, but there isn't enough power in the results to keep the share price rally going."
Mony Group, which trades as MoneySuperMarket, tumbled after US online insurance agent and comparison platform Insurify launched what it claimed is the insurance industry's first ChatGPT app. GoCompare owner Future was also under the cosh, along with Admiral.
On the upside, Croda surged to the top of the FTSE 100 as JPMorgan reiterated its 'overweight' rating on the shares and hiked the price target to 4,000p from 3,600p.
Coca-Cola HBC fizzed higher after it said reported revenue grew 7.9% in 2025, driven by strong organic growth, while Burberry rose after quarterly sales at Gucci owner Kering beat expectations.
AstraZeneca edged up as it posted a jump in full-year revenues and earnings, boosted by strong demand for its oncology drugs.
Housebuilder Bellway advanced after saying it was on track to meet its full-year completions guidance as it hailed a "robust" first-half performance in a challenging market. It also highlighted "clear signs" of improving customer demand in the early weeks of the current spring selling season. Other housebuilders followed suit, with Barratt, Berkeley and Vistry all up.
Homeware retailer Dunelm gained as it reported a drop in interim profit following softer trading in the second quarter, but backed its full-year profit outlook and said sales had picked up in the third quarter.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,353.84 -0.31%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 23,469.30 0.55%
techMARK (TASX) 6,002.34 0.85%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Croda International (CRDA) 3,201.00p 9.40%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 4,478.00p 4.68%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 4,254.00p 3.89%
Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 389.00p 3.62%
Mondi (MNDI) 936.40p 3.45%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,215.50p 3.40%
Spirax Group (SPX) 7,820.00p 3.37%
Diageo (DGE) 1,814.00p 3.33%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 146.20p 2.96%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 1,283.50p 2.72%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
BP (BP.) 448.35p -6.13%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,789.00p -5.74%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,364.00p -4.55%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 3,648.00p -4.45%
St James's Place (STJ) 1,449.00p -3.53%
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,455.00p -3.26%
Aviva (AV.) 625.00p -2.95%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 436.40p -2.70%
Barclays (BARC) 474.40p -2.50%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,243.50p -2.47%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Playtech (PTEC) 351.50p 10.19%
WPP (WPP) 282.40p 5.44%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 63.20p 4.90%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 2,570.00p 4.47%
Vistry Group (VTY) 699.00p 4.20%
Bellway (BWY) 2,648.00p 4.09%
Travis Perkins (TPK) 686.50p 3.87%
Victrex plc (VCT) 706.00p 3.82%
Renishaw (RSW) 3,870.00p 3.60%
Pagegroup (PAGE) 213.40p 3.49%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Mony Group (MONY) 152.80p -8.61%
Future (FUTR) 443.60p -3.02%
Plus500 Ltd (DI) (PLUS) 4,792.00p -2.88%
Quilter (QLT) 188.80p -2.18%
Harworth Group (HWG) 161.00p -2.13%
W.A.G Payment Solutions (EWG) 122.50p -2.00%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 692.50p -1.92%
Close Brothers Group (CBG) 492.60p -1.77%
Pan African Resources (PAF) 139.00p -1.56%
XPS Pensions Group (XPS) 340.00p -1.45%
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