London’s biggest market fell on Tuesday after a stronger pound weighed on results from UK multinationals.
Weakness in London banking stocks caused by underperformance HSBCwas also a drag.
However, a broader positive post-confirmation Rishi Sunak how prime minister helped the markets recover significant positions after the day’s lows.
The FTSE 100 ended the day down 0.51 points, or 0.01%, at 7,013.48.
The pound was up 1.77% against the dollar at 1.148 and 0.79% against the euro at 1.151 at the close.
Government borrowing costs also improved as long-dated yields fell due to improved market confidence.
Joshua Mahoney, senior market analyst at IG, said: “With yields falling to a monthly low, we see markets clearly expressing confidence that Sunak will be able to avoid the mistakes made by its predecessor.
“The appearance of Sunak in Downing Street had a tangible impact on the pound sterling today, which is currently the best performer among the major currencies over the past 24 hours.
“Unfortunately for the FTSE 100, its inverse correlation with the pound means it remains the only market in the red.”
Elsewhere in Europe, other major markets rose as traders hoped for a quick easing of interest rate hikes.
By the end of the session, Germany’s Dax was up 0.94% and France’s Cac was up 1.94%.
In the US, the main market firmed in early trade after updates from Coca-Cola and General Motors beat expectations and boosted broader sentiment.
In company news, HSBC fell in trading on Tuesday despite higher profits for the latest quarter.
The banking giant reported adjusted pre-tax profit for the three months to September 30 of $6.5bn (£5.76bn), up from $5.5bn (£4.87bn) a year earlier.
However, shares fell 32.45p to 442.65p after the company also announced the departure of its chief financial officer and chief executive, Ewan Stevenson.
Shares in THG rose after the owner of Lookfantastic and Cult Beauty maintained its revenue guidance for the year despite recent struggles.
The company said it still expects revenue to rise 10-15% despite lowering its earnings forecast last month.
THG closed up 8.33p to 54.82p
Problematic online store Made.com fell sharply after it emerged that talks with potential suitors over a rescue sale had broken down.
The board of directors entered into talks with “a number of parties”, but all confirmed they were unable to complete a deal by the group’s October 31 deadline. Made.com fell 6.74p to 0.5p.
Oil prices were broadly flat as a weaker dollar helped energy prices recover from earlier lows on Tuesday.
The price of Brent crude oil rose by 0.09% to 93.34 dollars per barrel after the close of London trading.
Biggest gainers in the FTSE 100 were Segro, up 52.8p to 798p, Land Securities, up 31.8p to 568.8p, Flutter, up 600p to 11,375p, Ocado Group, up 25 .4p to 504.8p, and Hargreaves Lansdown, up 36.2p. r on 777 r.
Biggest decliners on the day were HSBC, down 32.45p to 442.65p, Shell, down 55.5p to 2,289.5p, Standard Chartered, down 7.2p to 554.4p, Compass group , down 22p to 1,819.5p, and Harbor Energy, down 4p. on 371 p.
https://www.standard.co.uk/business/business-news/strong-pound-weighs-on-ftse-100-as-banking-stocks-slip-b1035175.html