On Monday, London stocks saw a slight rebound, driven primarily by mining companies. This came after U.S. President Donald Trump adopted a more conciliatory tone regarding trade tensions with China, which had triggered a significant market selloff the previous Friday. The FTSE 100, representing the top blue-chip companies, showed signs of recovery.
In the previous session, tensions flared after Trump threatened to impose 100% tariffs on Chinese imports, sparking renewed concerns about a potential trade war between the world's two largest economies. Despite the uncertainty, the FTSE 250 index, which focuses on mid-cap stocks, climbed 1.15%. Over the weekend, Trump adopted a more diplomatic approach, assuring that "it will all be fine" and emphasising that the U.S. had no intention of "hurting" China. This shift in tone brought some relief to the markets. Precious metal miners emerged as standout performers, surging by 7% as gold prices reached another record high. Leading the charge on the FTSE 100 were Fresnillo and Endeavour, which saw impressive gains of 7.6% and 6.4%, respectively. In the mergers and acquisitions space, U.S. private equity powerhouse Blackstone revealed it was in the early stages of evaluating a potential cash offer for Big Yellow Group. This news sent shares of the self-storage company soaring by 18.3%, while rival Safestore also experienced a significant boost, jumping 11.2%.
Tritax Big Box saw its shares rise nearly 3% following Blackstone's agreement to acquire a 9% stake in the UK real estate investment trust. As part of the deal, Tritax agreed to purchase Blackstone's UK logistics assets for £1.04 billion ($1.39 billion). The broader real estate sector also benefited, advancing by 2.5%. Industrial metal miners enjoyed gains as copper prices strengthened, with an index tracking the sector rising by 2.2%. Heavyweights like Anglo American, Glencore, and Rio Tinto contributed to the momentum, with their shares climbing between 1.5% and 2.8%, bolstering the blue-chip index. The markets showcased resilience amid geopolitical challenges, with key sectors seizing opportunities to shine.
Shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the UK saw a rise of 1.2%, reaching 83.88 pence. The bank announced it anticipates an additional charge of £800 million ($1.07 billion) due to a motor finance investigation in the UK, pushing its total provision to £1.95 billion. Despite this, analysts at ING remain optimistic, stating that Lloyds can comfortably absorb the financial impact through its earnings. Lloyds is one of several banks under scrutiny in the UK for allegedly mis-selling car loans. Last week, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) revealed that the motor finance sector could face compensation costs between £8.2 billion and £9.7 billion for unfair car loan practices. As of last Friday's close, Lloyds' stock had climbed an impressive 51.33% in 2025, showcasing strong performance despite ongoing challenges.
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Patrick has been involved in the financial markets for well over a decade as a self-educated professional trader and money manager. Flitting between the roles of market commentator, analyst and mentor, Patrick has improved the technical skills and psychological stance of literally hundreds of traders – coaching them to become savvy market operators!