London open: Stocks flat as cracks form in ceasefire
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Thursday 09 Apr 2026
(Sharecast News) - London stocks were little changed in early trade on Thursday while oil prices ticked up as investors continued to mull events in the Middle East and a two-week ceasefire that's already breaking down.
At 0835 BST, the FTSE 100 was flat at 10,606.67. Brent crude was 2.5% higher at $97.11 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate was up 3.2% at $97.43.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: "Relief has now been reflected in market movements, but the next challenge is to turn this into belief. There have already been reports that the ceasefire is a fragile one, with further Israeli attacks on Lebanon. This has led to threats that Iran could withdraw from the truce if the attacks continue, while White House comments have remained aggressive as forces remain in the area, poised to act if necessary.
"In addition, the oil price rose by 2%, although remaining below the psychologically important $100 per barrel level. There are conflicting descriptions of the current state of play in the Strait of Hormuz. The US insist that there has been an uptick in traffic, but apparently ships have been told by Iran that the Strait remains closed. Indeed, tanker-tracker firms have reported a trickle of ships passing through compared to pre-war levels which, as a key negotiation strand, is one which needs to be fully resolved.
"Nor is it clear that the list of demands from the two parties have much common ground, such that this news-driven market will mean that volatility remains nearby."
On home shores, industry research showed the housing market faltered in March as the Iran war weighed heavily on sentiment.
According to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' latest residential market survey, both buyer enquiries and agreed sales fell sharply last month, while house prices tracked lower.
The new buyer enquiries balance lost 10 points to -39, the weakest since August 2023, with agreed sales tumbling to -34 from -13 in February. The house price balance came in at -23, compared to -14 a month previously.
Respondents flagged rising borrowing costs and a spike in geopolitical uncertainty, with conditions forecast to remain difficult. The short-term sales expectations balance plunged to -33 from -4 a month ago.
A net balance is the proportion of respondents reporting a rise minus those reporting a fall.
Tarrant Parsons, head of market research and analysis at Rics, said: "The mood across the UK housing market has shifted markedly over the past couple of months. What had been a cautiously improving picture for activity has been knocked off course by the wider macro fallout from the Middle East conflict, as the renewed deterioration in the mortgage rate outlook has proved particularly challenging."
In equity markets, DCC was the standout gainer on the FTSE 100 after an upgrade to 'outperform' from 'neutral' by BNP Paribas, while Irn-Bru maker AG Barr fizzed higher after an initiation at 'buy' by Bank of America.
Metlen Energy & Metals gained as it posted better-than-expected annual earnings despite project cost overruns and delays.
British American Tobacco was steady as it announced the appointment of Dragos Constantinescu as chief financial officer with effect from 1 September. He is currently serving as chief executive of Asahi Europe & International, having been with Asahi Breweries since 2019. Constantinescu also spent 16 years at BAT, where he held senior finance and general management roles.
Oil giants BP and Shell were in the black as oil prices picked up again.
On the downside, Standard Life, Reckitt Benckiser, Croda and Lloyds Banking all fell as they traded without entitlement to the dividend.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,606.67 -0.02%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 22,299.44 -0.60%
techMARK (TASX) 5,888.36 -0.07%
FTSE 100 - Risers
DCC (CDI) (DCC) 5,100.00p 3.31%
BP (BP.) 572.30p 2.04%
Metlen Energy & Metals (MTLN) 36.24p 1.74%
SSE (SSE) 2,740.00p 1.52%
Glencore (GLEN) 569.30p 1.50%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 1,383.50p 1.47%
National Grid (NG.) 1,348.00p 1.31%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 383.80p 1.25%
Severn Trent (SVT) 3,228.00p 1.16%
Vodafone Group (VOD) 118.90p 1.15%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Standard Life (SDLF) 709.60p -3.14%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 5,220.00p -2.32%
Entain (ENT) 569.80p -2.26%
Croda International (CRDA) 2,940.00p -2.07%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 100.18p -1.78%
Compass Group 11 (CPG) 28.54p -1.72%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 137.60p -1.71%
Fresnillo (FRES) 3,562.00p -1.57%
Whitbread (WTB) 2,446.00p -1.37%
Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 262.70p -1.27%
FTSE 250 - Risers
W.A.G Payment Solutions (EWG) 120.00p 4.35%
4Imprint Group (FOUR) 3,602.00p 4.00%
Diversified Energy Company (DI) (DEC) 1,236.00p 3.17%
Energean (ENOG) 858.00p 3.13%
Ithaca Energy (ITH) 247.30p 2.93%
HGCapital Trust (HGT) 390.00p 2.63%
Barr (A.G.) (BAG) 664.50p 2.61%
Bodycote (BOY) 675.50p 2.35%
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust (USA) 311.00p 1.63%
HarbourVest Global Private Equity Limited A Shs (HVPE) 3,090.00p 1.48%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 315.60p -7.33%
ITV (ITV) 75.70p -4.84%
Man Group (EMG) 249.00p -4.40%
Playtech (PTEC) 376.60p -3.98%
Savills (SVS) 818.00p -3.86%
Dr. Martens (DOCS) 63.90p -3.77%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 188.25p -3.71%
TP Icap Group (TCAP) 281.80p -3.44%
BlackRock Smaller Companies Trust (BRSC) 1,248.00p -3.41%
RTW Biotech Opportunities Ltd (RTW) 2.03p -3.33%
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