FTSE 100 Modestly Lower At Noon

(RTTNews) - The London stock market's benchmark FTSE 100 fell on Tuesday as stocks shed ground amid concerns over fading prospects of a U.S.-Iran peace deal, rising oil prices and political uncertainty in the UK.

U.S. President Donald Trump said the fragile ceasefire between Washington and Tehran was on "massive life support," raising fresh doubts over the chances of a lasting truce.

Brent crude futures climbed to $107.60 a barrel, gaining nearly 3%.

Back home, more than 70 Labour MPs have reportedly called for Prime Minister Keir Starmer's departure following weak local election results.

The FTSE 100, which fell to 10,150.23 earlier in the session, was down 31.93 points or 0.31% at 10,237.50 at noon.

Vodafone Group dropped 5.2% after the telecommunications operator lost clients in its key German market last quarter.

Entain shed about 4.2%. Airtel Africa eased by nearly 4%, while Barclays Group, Lloyds Banking Group and Natwest Group drifted down 3%-4%.

3i Group, St. James's Place, Howden Joinery Group, BT Group, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Rentokil Initial and Babcock International lost 2%-2.7%. Standard Chartered, Melrose Industries< Lion Finance, Segro, Relx, Antofagasta and Barratt Redrow also declined sharply.

Among the gainers, Intertek Group climbed more than 5%. British American Tobacco, LSEG, Compass Group, BP, Shell, Unilever, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, GSK and Diageo gained 1%-2.5%.

In economic news, a report from British Retail Consortium showed UK retail sales decreased by 3.4% year-on-year on a like-for-like basis in April, sharply missing expectations for a 0.8% increase and reversing the 3.1% growth recorded in March. The latest figure marked the first contraction in retail activity since November 2024, highlighting a notable deterioration in consumer demand.